A Turkish women’s rights advocate called for stronger enforcement of protection measures and a return to the Istanbul Convention after 13 women were killed by men across the country in 10 days, saying the conditions that leave women vulnerable to violence remain unchanged, İlke TV reported on Wednesday.
Şafak Yağmur Karadaş, the İzmir representative of the We Will Stop Femicides Platform (KCDP), said the killings should not be treated as isolated cases and urged authorities to fully enforce Turkey’s main law on preventing violence against women, monitor protection orders and take preventive action when women face known threats.
The 13 women were killed between September 19 and 28 in cities across Turkey. Twelve were murdered by their husbands or by men from whom they had separated.
Karadaş said the number of murders in such a short period was striking but not surprising because her organization records similar cases every month. She also called for deaths initially considered suicides or accidents to be effectively investigated until questions surrounding the circumstances have been resolved.
She said authorities should examine what happened before a woman was killed, including whether she had previously reported violence or threats, whether protective measures had been ordered and enforced and whether officials had adequately assessed the risk she faced.
Karadaş also called for people known to have committed or threatened violence to be prevented from obtaining firearms and said authorities should ensure that orders requiring that weapons be surrendered are actually enforced. She also urged tighter controls on unlicensed firearms.
She said discussions about protecting the family should also address why women are being killed in their own homes, arguing that authorities need to examine whether complaints are taken seriously and whether restraining and protection orders are effectively implemented.
Karadaş called for effective implementation of Law No. 6284 and for Turkey to rejoin the Istanbul Convention.
Law No. 6284, adopted in 2012, is aimed at protecting women, children, family members and stalking victims who have experienced or are at risk of violence and provides for protective and preventive measures.
The Istanbul Convention, formally the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, sets standards for preventing violence, protecting victims and prosecuting perpetrators. Turkey withdrew from the treaty effective July 1, 2021.
The KCDP recorded 22 women killed by men in August, its most recent monthly report before September.
Karadaş said preventing such killings requires authorities to act before violence becomes fatal, including through risk assessments, enforcement of protection orders and restrictions on firearm access for people considered a threat.
