ISTANBUL - Stating that the opposition, like the government, took a "right-wing" position in the Constitutional amendment proposal submitted to the Parliament, women lawyers said: "Human rights and freedoms cannot be made into political materials," and drew attention to the many dangers of the proposal.

 

AKP, MHP and Great Unity Party (BBP) submitted the constitutional amendment proposal, which introduced "constitutional guarantees for the headscarf" and redefined the family, to the Presidency of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey with the signature of 336 MPs on December 9, 2022. The proposal to amend the 24th article of the Constitution titled "freedom of religion and conscience" and the 41st article titled "protection of the family and children's rights" caused reactions from many segments, especially women's organizations.

 

171 women and LGBTI+ organizations called on the opposition parties to say "no" to the constitutional amendment proposal, with a statement released on December 27. The number of organizations and institutions in this call later exceeded 500 with the participation of labor and professional organisations. Esma Çağlak, a lawyer from the Strong Women Together, and Ezel Buse Sönmezocak, an advocacy consultant at the Women's Human Rights-New Solutions Association, made evaluations about the proposal.

 

AKP'S MISOGYNISTIC POLICY

 

Stating that the AKP government has been trying to create a "reasonable woman" with the misogynistic policies it has been carrying out for the last 20 years, Esma Çağlak said: "The Istanbul Convention and the law numbered 6284 were not implemented because of this. The last request for a constitutional amendment submitted to the Parliament is an attempt to directly address women's living spaces. Especially Article 41 was prepared in this direction. In both articles, women are wanted to be defined within the family. This law change is actually an application that will pave the way for polygamy and child marriages. It's very dangerous in that aspect.”

 

DECISION ARE MADE ABOUT WOMEN WITHOUT THEIR CONSENT

 

Noting that today's 6th Table, which describes itself as the opposition in the Parliament, has a "right-wing" position like the ruling party against this proposal, Çağlak said: "The power of women in the ballot box is so important for the parties of the upcoming elections. The opposition has to act with women's organizations and the gains of the women's struggle. While making this motion, the CHP did not contact any women's organisations. Without the consent of women, decisions are made about our lives.”

 

CIVIL LAW IS TARGETED

 

Pointing out that the said amendment is a change that directly targets LGBTI+s and guarantees hate crime, Çağlak said: “Religious regulations regarding our legal rights in the Civil Code and other laws will be paved with this constitutional amendment. Our principle of struggle is the defense of secularism because we have been fighting for centuries against religious domination over both our bodies and our labor, and the male violence that this has created.”

 

THE PURPOSE IS POLARIZING AND DISCRIMINATION

 

Stating that men try to dominate the female body, attorney Ezel Buse Sönmezocak said: "The content of Article 41 is clearly contrary to the universal human rights norms and the Constitution. Article 24 will lead to a distinction such as "headscarved-open" among women. There will be polarization among women. This situation is extremely dangerous. Women's organizations and non-governmental organizations in the country are against this proposal. A constitutional amendment cannot be made in a political environment where gender equality and women's vested rights are attacked at every opportunity, and hate crimes are committed against LGBTI+s every day. The bodies of women, the dignity of LGBTI+s, human rights and freedoms cannot be made political material; therefore, we fundamentally reject this constitutional amendment proposal.``

 

MA / Esra Solin Dal