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Concluding Declarations

Concluding Declaration of the 4th Assembly of Women’s Shelters and Solidarity Centres

By 04/09/2017January 2nd, 2025No Comments

Launched as an initiative of Mor Çatı Women’s Shelter Foundation, the Assembly of Women’s Shelters had convened annually for the last three years on 25 November declared by the United Nations as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. This year, the Assembly was held for the 4th time in Antalya on 24-25 November 2001, hosted by Antalya Women’s Counselling and Solidarity Centre with support from Heinrich Böll Foundation.

Around 150 women joined the Assembly representing 44 women’s groups and organisations from various provinces in Turkey and TRNC, the Directorate General for Women’s Status and Problems (KSSGM) and the Social Services and Child Protection Agency (SHÇEK).

Below are some of the actions the women’s Council took in the last year following the Third Council meeting:

  1. A communications network is established among women’s groups and organizations.
  2. On 25 November 2000, events were held in most provinces across Turkey urging the prevention of violence against women.
  3. Official authorities stopped the campaign kick-started by Mor Çatı Women’s Shelter Foundation and supported by women’s organizations. The campaign had been launched in accordance with the decision taken at the 3rd Council to display the violence against women and open independent women’s shelters.
  4. “Women represent women”. We believe that men cannot represent us, therefore we made sure that the 1st İstanbul Biennial organized by men was not successful.
  5. Demonstrations were held in protest of proposed amendments against women in the Justice Committee during its deliberations of the Draft Civil Code. The Assembly started to monitor the actions of the TGNA (Turkish Grand National Assembly). Women went to the TGNA to voice their objections. In Antalya, Bakırtepe Mountain Demonstration was held; in İzmir, a march was organized where demonstrators held purple balloons. Purple ribbon demonstrations starting from Antalya spread across Turkey.
  6. Women’s groups from various provinces continually went to the TGNA and met party whips and the members of the parliament to discuss “Matrimonial Regime for Acquired Property”, regulated under the Civil Code, with a view to having it applied from the outset of marriage. All parties stated that they would support women. Women’s groups decided to monitor the extent these promises would be kept in the upcoming vote and cast our votes accordingly.

At the Assembly meeting, after exchanging information and opinions on the country’s agenda vis-à-vis violence against women, the participants formed four working groups under the below headings:

  1. Independent women’s shelters
  2. Women’s counselling centres
  3. Honor crimes-killings
  4. Incest, rape and war

The Assembly discussed the results of the working groups at a plenary session and unanimously took the following decisions:

  • Currently closed shelters of Mor Çatı Women’s Shelter Foundation (İstanbul) and Women’s Counselling Foundation (Ankara) should be reopened. Efforts are underway to open the shelters of the Association for Utilizing the Handicraft of Çanakkale Housewives and Mersin Independent Women’s Association. They should become operational in a year,
  • A nationwide “Violence Helpline” should be set up, which can be called dialling the same number from anywhere in the country. The helpline should provide information on what urgent action to take and where to contact, ensuring that callers can reach the women’s groups in their region,
  • It is imperative to ensure that the TGNA hold a specific session only to discuss Violence Against Women in order to establish a national mechanism for preventing violence against women, start a social movement for combatting violence against women and, in this context, repeal all legal regulations that encourage or ignore violence against women or impose ineffective sanctions,
  • The funding earmarked from the budget for Social Services and Child Protection Agency (SHÇEK) should be increased to improve services for women. Existing women’s guesthouses/shelters etc. should be strengthened and their service efficiency should be enhanced. Women who have a woman’s perspective should be employed in these organizations. These services should be excluded from austerity measures. These institutions should be run in communication with independent women’s groups,
  • The Social Assistance and Solidarity Fund should earmark funds for independent women’s shelters,
  • The Law on the Organization of the Directorate General of Women’s Status and Problems should be adopted as soon as possible,
  • All relevant officials should be called out to take action to ensure that the TGNA immediately ratifies the Optional Protocol to CEDAW (United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women),
  • Regulations should be introduced to meet some of our demands including i) the review of the Draft Local Governments Law from a woman’s perspective, ii) the establishment of specialization commissions under the new draft law with the participation of women’s organizations in order to carry out women related activities in local governments, iii) earmarking funds from local government budget for women’s organizations, iv) the establishment of a unit that provides services for women in Special Provincial Administrations and municipalities and v) the consideration of women’s needs in zoning plans,
  • SHÇEK and local governments, in collaboration with independent women’s groups, should open women’s counselling centres that are available 24/7 in every province,
  • Special efforts should be made to raise awareness on honour killings,
  • Legal barriers to opening independent women’s counselling and solidarity centres should be removed and financial support should be given to these centres,
  • The following should be ensured: i) eradicating crimes committed on the ground of honour, which covers a wide range of offenses including virginity checks made to control female sexuality, ii) breaking down male dominance and feudal relationships in the long run, iii) carrying out adequate number of studies and research on honour killings, iv) pulling out all the stops to prevent honour killings and drawing public attention to this matter, v) opening special rehabilitation centres for victims of crimes and boys who committed murder on the ground of honour,
  • Specific regulations should be introduced in Turkish Penal Code to address incest, rape, virginity checks, honour killings and other offenses committed on the ground of honour, increasing the severity of punishments for these offenses. Furthermore, cases of incest should be covered by the law no. 4320 on the Protection of the Family,
  • The State Minister in Charge of Women’s Affairs and the Directorate General for Women’s Status and Problems (KSSGM) in collaboration with women’s organizations should develop a programme to address violence against women and in particular cases of incest, rape and honour killings, and consequently hold regular in-house seminars at the Ministries of Justice, Interior and Health as part of this programme,
  • Special units comprising experts trained on violence against women should be established in the Forensic Science Institute and hospital emergency rooms. These units should have a work connection with women’s counselling centres,
  • As a consequence of globalization, the powers that grow rich or benefit from terrorism and wars create wars in order to dominate countries of the world. Rape in wars, which we consider to be a war crime, should be punished and relevant states should pay compensation for these crimes. Relationships with women’s organizations/groups in countries at war/ war zones should be strengthened.
  • Women working in the public sector should be excluded from ex officio retirement schemes, which are adopted on the ground of crisis response measures and policies for downsizing the state,
  • A “Communication Centre” should be established with the aims of ensuring exchange of information, documentation and experience among women’s organizations working to combat violence against women, creating a common language, developing and implementing an education programme and speeding up and sustaining communication.

Fundamental principles of “women’s shelters”, the most important topic of our Council, are as follows:

  • Women should not be discriminated against on the grounds of age, sex, sexual preference, ethnicity, religion-sect, language, disability, profession or civil status.
  • Confidentiality of the locations of the shelters and of the information about women who apply to these shelters seeking assistance.
  • Independence of the shelters.
  • The shelters should be run by women.

“The By-law on Women’s Guesthouses” issued by SHÇEK are against the above-mentioned international principles in its provisions covering the establishment, functioning and staff working conditions of independent women’s shelters; hence runs the risk of destroying the independence of shelters to be opened by independent women’s groups. Therefore, we, the independent women’s organizations participating the Assembly, are against the SHÇEK By-law and we do not adopt it.

 

  • Adana Association for Establishing Women’s Counselling Centres and Shelters
  • Ankara Bar Association Women’s Counselling Centre
  • Ankara Bar Association Women’s Law Committee
  • Antalya Women’s Counselling and Solidarity Centre
  • Mediterranean Education Group Association to Support Women’s Employment (AKIDE)
  • Antakya Municipality Women and Mother- Child Centre
  • Batman Independent Women’s Group
  • Bingöl Independent Women’s Group
  • Women of the Republic Association
  • Association for Utilizing the Handicraft of Çanakkale Housewives
  • Dicle Women’s Culture Centre– İstanbul
  • Diyarbakır Bar Association
  • Diyarbakır Women’s Centre (KAMER)
  • World Academy for Local Government and Democracy (WALD)
  • Esenyurt Women’s Home – İstanbul
  • İstanbul Bar Association Implementation Centre for Women’s Law
  • İstanbul Women’s Collective
  • İzmir Bar Association Women’s Commission
  • İzmir City Council Women’s Commission
  • İzmir Bar Association Women’s Counselling Centre Initiative
  • İzmir Karşıyaka City Council Women’s Commission
  • İzmit – Değirmendere Women’s Support Centre
  • Jiyan Women’s Culture and Art Centre– İstanbul
  • Women’s Solidarity Foundation– Ankara
  • Women’s Solidarity Foundation (KADAV) – İstanbul
  • Women’s Human Rights Project (KHIP)
  • NGO Advocacy Network for Women (KIDOG) – İstanbul
  • Kızıltepe Independent Women’s Group
  • Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Group for Preventing Domestic Violence
  • Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Trade Union of Turkish State Employees
  • Directorate General for Women’s Status and Problems (KSSGM)
  • Mersin Independent Women’s Association
  • Mor Çatı Women’s Shelter Foundation
  • Seyhan Municipality Family Counselling Centre
  • Social Services and Child Protection Agency (Ankara, Bursa, Samsun, İzmir, Antalya)
  • Sütçüler Community Centre – Antalya
  • Şahmaran Women’s Home Help Centre– İstanbul
  • Union of Turkish Bar Associations Women’s Law Committee (TÜBAKKOM)
  • Flying Broom Foundation
  • Urfa Independent Women’s Group
  • Local Agenda 21 Antalya Women’s Assembly
  • Local Agenda 21 Antalya Youth Assembly
  • Youth For Habitat – Antalya
  • Habibler Community Centre – Antalya (BB/NU)

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