Thirty-six women were murdered by men in Turkey in February, and 17 more died under suspicious circumstances, the Evrensel newspaper reported on Monday, citing the We Will End Femicide Platform.
Of the 36 women who were murdered, 10 were killed by their husbands and seven by ex-husbands, the report said.
Seven were slain by current or former romantic partners, and seven others by family members.
At least 17 of the victims were murdered over their decisions concerning their own lives, such as asking for a divorce, rejecting reconciliation with a romantic partner and rejecting a marriage proposal or a romantic relationship.
Femicides and violence against women are chronic problems in Turkey, where women are killed, raped or beaten almost every day.
According to the We Will Stop Femicide Platform, at least 315 women were murdered by men and 248 women died under suspicious circumstances throughout 2023.
Many critics say the main reason behind the situation is the policies of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government, which protects violent and abusive men by granting them impunity.
Turkish courts have repeatedly drawn criticism due to their tendency to hand down lenient sentences to offenders, claiming that the crime was “motivated by passion” or by interpreting victims’ silence as consent.
In a move that attracted national and international outrage, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan through a presidential decree pulled the country out of an international treaty in March 2021 that requires governments to adopt legislation prosecuting perpetrators of domestic violence and similar abuse as well as marital rape and female genital mutilation.
The Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, better known as the Istanbul Convention, is an international accord designed to protect women’s rights and prevent domestic violence in societies and was opened to the signature of Council of Europe member countries in 2011.
Erdoğan’s allies have been calling for further rollbacks, urging the repeal of a domestic law that stipulates protection mechanisms for women who either have suffered or are at risk of suffering violence.
