TURKEY: Femicides & more – 8th Oct 2024

Merhaba from Keswick Village! This is the Rorshok Turkey Update from the 8th of October twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what's going down in Turkey.

Unfortunately, we are starting off with some tragic news… On Friday the 4th, Semih Çelik, a nineteen-year-old Turkish man, murdered two women, Ayşenur Halil and İkbal Uzuner, in Istanbul. He then took his own life jumping from the Edirnekapı ramparts.

Media outlets reported that he cut Halil’s throat and brutally dismembered Uzuner and left her body on display at the rampants. The pictures of their bodies started circulating on the internet, leading to a public outrage. The growing attention prompted an Istanbul court to issue a broadcast ban on the case, which led to further protests. Anger grew after investigations revealed that the murderer threw Uzuner’s head from the city walls with her mother present.

Following the murders, the police began monitoring incel groups. Investigators discovered that Çelik had been in contact with individuals identifying as incel, or involuntary celibate, a term for men who feel unable to attract women and often express hostility toward them and believe they deserve fewer rights. After the murders, some members of these groups publicly supported Çelik on social media, prompting police to monitor incel groups and accounts promoting violent or racist content, with plans for future operations and detentions.

In the same week, the police arrested two men after a video surfaced of them sexually assaulting a woman in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district. Initially, the police had released the two when the victim didn’t file a complaint. However, they were later re-arrested due to public backlash and their extensive criminal records, which included extortion and sexual assault. The attack has been linked to the broader issue of patriarchal violence and the lack of effective prevention.

With femicides on the rise and recent horrific incidents, including the murder of a nine-year-old girl, Narin, Turkish women have had enough. Hundreds gathered in the Istanbul neighborhood of Edirnekapı, where Çelik murdered Uzuner, to demand justice. They called on the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, to take action against femicides and improve the enforcement of laws protecting women.

Protests spread across Turkey, with demonstrations in cities like Bursa and Mersin, as women voiced their frustration and fear over feeling unsafe.

To know more about viole e against women in Turkey, follow the link in the show notes.

After such cases of violence, pepper spray sales skyrocketed in the country. The owner of a major pepper spray dealership said his company received nearly two thousand orders in just two days, about thirty times their normal daily volume. Other sellers reported similar increases in demand, doubling their usual sales, highlighting growing concerns over personal safety and a deepening distrust in the government's ability to protect citizens.

Last Tuesday the 1st, the Parliament opened its new legislative year. In the first session, some members of the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, refused to stand as President Erdoğan entered, protesting against his push for a new constitution, saying it would solidify his control. During the session, a CHP deputy raised a placard reading, “Parliament is violating the Constitution.” The Workers’ Party of Turkey boycotted the session entirely.

On the following day, an Ankara court sentenced five people to life in prison for the murder of Sinan Ateş, the former head of the ultranationalist Grey Wolves organization. Back in twenty twenty-two, Ateş was shot and killed. His family accused high-ranking members of the Nationalist Movement Party or MHP, which has ties to the Grey Wolves, of being involved in the murder. Ateş had had a falling-out with the MHP, and had to resign from his post as the Grey Wolves head.

The sentenced include shooter Eray Özyağcı and accomplices involved in planning the attack. They stated that they planned the shooting over a personal conflict and denied any political motives. The court also issued prison sentences for several others connected to the crime, while acquitting ten defendants. The trial has sparked outrage. It was put into question as the MHP might have got away with the assassination.

In some international news, The German Federal Security Council has approved arms exports to NATO ally Turkey worth several hundred million dollars. This includes one hundred air defense missiles, twenty-eight SeaHake-type torpedoes, and materials for modernizing Turkish submarines and frigates, totaling around 370 million dollars.

This move marks a significant shift in policy for the coalition government of the Social Democratic Party, the Greens, and the Free Democratic Party, which took office in twenty twenty-one. Previously, Germany restricted arms exports to Turkey due to concerns over President Erdoğan's leadership. In twenty twenty-three, the country approved only seventeen arms export applications worth around one and a half million dollars, continuing into early twenty twenty-four.

Speaking of improving relations, Giorgos Gerapetritis, the Greek Foreign Minister, said that Greece and Turkey are preparing for talks on the boundaries of the underwater land areas of both countries, as the two often disagree on the matter, leading to tension. In an interview, he said that the countries have built trust through open communication over the past fifteen months, with further talks planned in the future.

He also said that even without a formal agreement, maintaining positive relations is a priority. After twenty-one years of stalled talks, he stressed the need for active efforts to make progress on the complicated issue of maritime boundaries.

Next up, Oruc Reis, a Turkish seismic research vessel, is set to begin exploring for both oil and natural gas off the coast of Somalia by the end of October, following an energy cooperation deal between Turkey and Somalia. The agreement, made in March, grants gas company Turkish Petroleum exploration rights in three areas of Somali waters. Turkey's Energy Minister stated that the region shows promising oil prospects.

On another note, on Thursday the 3rd, First Lady Emine Erdoğan launched the Natural is Normal campaign, aiming to promote vaginal births over Cesarean sections. She expressed alarm over the rising C-section rates in the country, which exceed the World Health Organization's recommended limit of fifteen percent. She also warned that this trend poses a growing danger to maternal and child health.

The health ministry released a public service announcement titled Mommy, We Did It, which sparked significant debate on social media. There was a video saying that mothers who give birth naturally bond better with their babies, can breastfeed immediately, and quickly resume daily activities. However, the campaign's use of the term normal birth instead of vaginal birth raised concerns. Critics argued that it pressured women into specific medical choices and stigmatized assisted deliveries, ultimately infringing on reproductive rights.

In other news, Saydamlar Catering, a company that provides meals to schools, dormitories, and factories, faced criticism after a food sample revealed the presence of pork, a product forbidden in Islam and generally unpopular in the predominantly Muslim country. This discovery prompted the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to classify the company as a supplier of harmful and counterfeit food.

Adding to the controversy, Murat Saydam, the company's owner, also serves as the Social Policies Chairman for the AKP, which has a conservative and religious affiliation. Saydam defended the company, arguing that the findings were based on a single sample and thus unfair.

And for our last story, the Mayor of Balıkesir announced that the municipality came up with an initiative to support local okra farmers after they failed to sell their produce at market value. Farmers who couldn’t sell okra for seventy liras, which is two dollars, are now seeing their produce bought for ninety liras, almost three dollars. Once sold, companies process the plant into dried okra chips. These chips have found strong demand in the U.S. market, where they sell for forty-one dollars per kilogram.

The Mayor explained that this project supports local farmers while also giving Balıkesir’s agricultural products international recognition. He emphasized that the goal is to buy farmers’ crops at a fair price, process them into higher-value products, and strengthen the region’s agricultural potential.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

Do you know that besides the Rorshok Turkey Update, we also do others? Our latest ones are the Arctic Update, about the area north of the Arctic Circle, the Ocean Update, about the 70% of the world covered in salt water, and the Multilateral Update, about the world’s major multilateral institutions. The other ones are all country updates, we have a selection of countries from Africa, Asia, South America, and Europe. Check roroshok.com/updates for the full list, the link is in the show notes.

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