Intelligence agency a target of equality
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Anatolian News Agency
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 18, 2009 00:00
ANKARA - Advertisements posted by the country’s top intelligence agency seeking "male employees" will be the first target of Parliament’s newly established equal-opportunity commission.
Chaired by Güldal Akşit, an Istanbul deputy for the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, the commission met for the first time last week. The meeting focused on the vacancy ads from the National Intelligence Agency, or MİT, as well as the practice of forcing teenagers into marriage.
The commission decided to send a warning to MİT, asking it to change the wording of the ad. Speaking at the meeting, Akşit said it was the first time such a commission had been formed in Parliament’s 89-year history. She said the commission would be working to ensure women’s rights in state institutions.
According to Akşit, a booklet would be prepared in Turkish and English to detail the work of the commission, as would an Internet site that would be updated regularly. She said she has approached Parliament Speaker Köksal Toptan about organizing a symposium and that he was open to the idea.
Nevin Gaye Erbatur, an Adana deputy for the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, spoke at the meeting and said many people in Turkey were not aware what gender equality meant. Erbatur said members of the commission should look into academic studies and papers on equal opportunity among men and women and also recommended books that covered gender discrimination, violence toward children, honor killings and violence against women.
Forced teen marriages
Canan Arıtman, a CHP deputy from İzmir, brought the issue of forced teen marriages to the agenda and said in some provinces, up to 67 percent of all marriages involved teenagers. She said girls who married early had higher rates of early pregnancies and earlier deaths.
Arıtman added that domestic violence was common in teenage marriages, and that such unions effectively end the young person’s right to education. She said most of these marriages were religious ceremonies outside the scope of legal protection, victimizing the women.
The issue of young women forced into marriage was given for further study to a sub-commission headed by Öznur Çalık, an AKP deputy for Malatya.
The commission decided to send a warning to MİT, asking it to change the wording of the ad. Speaking at the meeting, Akşit said it was the first time such a commission had been formed in Parliament’s 89-year history. She said the commission would be working to ensure women’s rights in state institutions.
According to Akşit, a booklet would be prepared in Turkish and English to detail the work of the commission, as would an Internet site that would be updated regularly. She said she has approached Parliament Speaker Köksal Toptan about organizing a symposium and that he was open to the idea.
Nevin Gaye Erbatur, an Adana deputy for the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, spoke at the meeting and said many people in Turkey were not aware what gender equality meant. Erbatur said members of the commission should look into academic studies and papers on equal opportunity among men and women and also recommended books that covered gender discrimination, violence toward children, honor killings and violence against women.
Forced teen marriages
Canan Arıtman, a CHP deputy from İzmir, brought the issue of forced teen marriages to the agenda and said in some provinces, up to 67 percent of all marriages involved teenagers. She said girls who married early had higher rates of early pregnancies and earlier deaths.
Arıtman added that domestic violence was common in teenage marriages, and that such unions effectively end the young person’s right to education. She said most of these marriages were religious ceremonies outside the scope of legal protection, victimizing the women.
The issue of young women forced into marriage was given for further study to a sub-commission headed by Öznur Çalık, an AKP deputy for Malatya.