Human Rights Watch Says Turkish Authorities Fail To Protect Domestic Violence Victims
Syed Zeeshan Aziz (@imziishan) Published May 26, 2022 | 04:43 PM
The Turkish authorities fail to combat domestic violence and protect victims in need of assistance despite courts issuing restraining orders and increasing penalties for abusers and murderers, the Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in its report released on Thursday
MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 26th May, 2022) The Turkish authorities fail to combat domestic violence and protect victims in need of assistance despite courts issuing restraining orders and increasing penalties for abusers and murderers, the Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in its report released on Thursday.
"As the cases examined in this report illustrate, Turkey's authorities face deep challenges in combating violence against women perpetrated mainly by former and current spouses and partners," the report read.
Human Rights Watch said, citing government studies from 2008 to 2014, that around four out of 10 women in Turkey have been subjected to domestic violence by husbands or partners at some point of their lives. Meanwhile, women's rights groups record hundreds of femicides (intentional killing of women) in the country every year.
The report also unveiled that violence against woman often continues despite courts issuing preventive and protective orders. This is partly explained by the fact that perpetrators manage to get away violating the orders without any sanctions, which, in turn, indicates the inability of Turkish law enforcement to fulfil its obligations and the inadequate coordination between state agencies to provide victims with effective protection.
"The Ministry of Interior's own figures show that between 2016 and 2021, 8.
5 percent of women murdered by men had secured preventive or protective orders, and were thus officially being protected by the authorities at the time of their death," the report read.
In addition, many lawyers and human rights groups interviewed by HRW expressed grave concerns over Ankara's July 2021 withdrawal from the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, known as the Istanbul Convention. Even though the country has its own Law to Protect the Family and Prevent Violence against Women, which provides the necessary human rights base, the legislation fails to cover all issues related to violence and harassment, the report said.
Based on those facts, HRW called on the Turkish government to reverse its withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention and reaffirm its commitment to eliminating all forms of violence against women at various levels.
Moreover, the human rights watchdog issued recommendations on how to combat violence against women and domestic violence. The measures include strengthening the data collection, increasing transparency in cases of violence and government actions, enhancing resources and support for combating domestic violence, and promoting cooperation with civil society organizations.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
HEC reviews curricula for environmental sciences degree programme
ICC Asia looking forward to an action-packed Asia Cricket Week
Yuvraj Singh named ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Ambassador
Greece hands Olympic flame to 2024 Paris Games hosts
Two Kyiv hospitals evacuating over feared Russian strikes
World must act on neurotech revolution, say experts
Charles & Catherine's cancer diagnoses
Champions Alcaraz and Sabalenka through in Madrid Open
King Charles to resume some public duties during cancer treatment: palace
US defense chief announces $6 bn in security aid for Ukraine
Heavy rains cause damage to Spezand-Taftan railway track
Woman stabbed in Israel, attacker killed: police
More Stories From World
-
NFL will allow players to wear Guardian Cap helmets in games
3 hours ago -
Football: German Bundesliga table
3 hours ago -
Football: Italian Serie A result
3 hours ago -
Football: German Bundesliga results
3 hours ago -
US troops to leave Chad in second African state withdrawal
3 hours ago -
Plastics pollution may be solved without production cap: Canada minister
3 hours ago
-
Biden stalls on menthol cigarette ban fearing Black vote backlash
4 hours ago -
Champions Alcaraz and Sabalenka through in Madrid Open
4 hours ago -
6,000 French police to welcome Olympic torch amid bonus boost
4 hours ago -
Taiwan hit by several quakes, strongest reaching 6.1-magnitude
4 hours ago -
'Ballistic' Bairstow stars as Punjab pull off record T20 chase
4 hours ago -
Tennis: ATP/WTA Madrid Open results - 2nd update
4 hours ago