Simultaneous Statement from CHP Women's Branch in 81 Provinces

Reminding in his speech that the right of sovereignty passed to the people with the establishment of the Republic, Okumuş said, “This is a groundbreaking revolution. The second biggest revolution is equal citizenship rights. Equal citizenship rights were established within the secular order. The Civil Code, adopted on February 17, 1926, came into force on October 4, 1926. With the entry into force of the law, women and men had equal rights in education, social, cultural, economic and political life. Regulations regarding male polygamy and unilateral divorce were abolished, and the obligation of civil marriage and monogamous marriage were introduced. By granting women the right to divorce, the right to custody and disposition of their property, the right to testify in court, and the right to equal inheritance; "Men and women have been made equal," he said.

On the day the law was discussed, Mahmut Esat Bozkurt, then Minister of Justice, said in the Parliament: "In my opinion, the saddest figure in Turkish history is the Turkish woman." Recalling the words "The family organization and inheritance provisions of the new bill will bring the Turkish mother, who has been held by the arm at will and beaten down like a prisoner at will, but has always been a woman, to the respected position she deserves," Okumuş said in his statement:

“The Civil Code enacted in 1926 is based on secularism. The immutability of religious rules was emphasized, and it was stated that legal rules had to change according to social needs. Secularism was included in the Constitution 11 years later, on February 5, 1937. Turkish Civil Code has changed throughout history. As a result of women's organized struggle and determination, the Civil Code was further strengthened in 2002 and the family law section was reorganized. The 'article that requires the husband's consent for a married woman to work', which was annulled by the Constitutional Court in 1992, has been abolished from the Turkish Civil Code. Instead of the family model based on 'head of the family', a family model based on the principle of 'equality' was introduced. Necessary fair regulations regarding equal property sharing and alimony have been added. In the law, which stipulates that the age of marriage must be at least 18 for men and women, children outside of marriage have equal rights with children within marriage. 'Dishonorable behavior' has been considered a reason for divorce for spouses. In addition, the 'participation regime in acquired property' has become the legal property regime. Thus, unless a contract is made to the contrary, the other spouse is a partner in the property acquired by the spouses during the marriage.

Okumuş continued his statement with the following words: “In our country governed by those who do not believe in equality, women's human rights and secularism are under great threat. The government constantly sets its sights on the rights that women have earned by paying the price of their lives. The new target of the AKP, which abolished the Istanbul Convention and tried to prune the law no. 6284 protecting women from violence; It is the Civil Code. He thinks that he can put us women's rights in a bag and throw them away with the 'Omnibus Law' practice that he has made a tradition. However, he is very wrong. The government is again pursuing perception management. He looks at divorces from men's perspective and claims that the alimony paid to divorced women victimizes men. Let's remember: Minister of Family and Social Services Mahinur Özdemir Göktaş said in his statement on July 26, 2023, 'I care about the issue of indefinite alimony. He openly admitted that he sided with men, not women, saying, "If there are men who are victims, we stand by them."

Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç took this discourse one step further on November 6, 2023 and claimed that indefinite alimony in marriages was not equitable. However, there is no indefinite alimony. Of course, the Minister knows very well the conditions for granting alimony. One of the regulations that will be included in the omnibus law is aimed at accelerating divorces. In the Turkish judicial system, where cases take a very long time in every field, this promise sounds very nice, but in real life, this practice is a candy apple that will remain in our hands. Divorce will become easier for men, and women will not be able to get their rights. Even in consensual divorces, most women experience psychological violence. Another topic they talk about is family mediation. However, there is no need for mediation in divorces, the judge has the authority to make peace. Moreover, women who want to divorce are killed even in the courthouse. When brought together by the mediator to be reconciled, the woman has no security of life. Additionally, the mediation system is not applied in family law. CEDAW, which is under our signature; The United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women also stipulates this.

Today, we are not a single voice in just 81 provinces and 973 districts. We become one voice with all women's organizations and democracy components. We do not give up on equality in the family and equality in society. Let's not just write the Civil Code from scratch, we won't even allow them to move a comma in it. We will never give way to those who ignore the Civil Code, are hostile to the values ​​of the Republic and call for sharia. We will resist both in the Parliament and on the field. We will expand the struggle with our organized power and by uniting with the women's movement. "We will delete from politics those who say 'restart' for the Civil Code."