History of Turkey's Emancipation

To truly understand the situation in Turkey, we believe you need to know the country's historical context.

After the war of independence, Mustafa Kemal began introducing modern, western policies into the new established Republic (Kandiyoti 320). One of the major strides taken was the emancipation of women (Tepe 299). Following the adoption of the Turkish Civil code which gave a range of martial rights, women were given the right to vote in the 1930’s (Kandiyoti 320). However, these outcomes were clearly a strategy to emphasis the move away from the strict, ‘traditional’ Islamic Ottoman Empire, rather than a success due to women’s dissent (Kandiyoti 320). Following these new rights, women were not allowed to organise and lobby for rights and legislation still contained gender roles ideology (Arat 111). It became obvious that women were only emancipated to the level that men deemed acceptable.

A new wave of feminist dissent began in the 1980’s when educated women started organisations and fighting for autonomy from tradition (Arat 107). However, we believe there has never been true liberation for Turkish women, especially with recent increases in femicide. Instead, this historical illusion that Turkish women are emancipated and liberated means current Turkish women’s struggles are glossed over.

Emancipation is Not Liberation

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