What Is Violence Against Women's Autonomy?

Words: 1062
Pages: 5
Open Document
to press a restraining order on an abusive spouse to protect the abused spouse and children, but as shown in the Violence Against Women in Turkey—A Nationwide Survey, 42.8 percent of Turkish women have never even heard of the Family Protection Law. And for those who are aware of the law, only 7.5 percent of those surveyed knew someone who has benefited from the law. The laws to help maintain women’s autonomy may be presented perfectly on paper, but are rarely executed with effort. The issue of domestic violence is not treated with urgency, which causes women to remain silent about their encounters with violence. Most women do not report their incidents either out of shame and embarrassment or out of hope that their experience was a one-time …show more content…
Ruling party parliamentarian Ahyan Sefer Ustun also declared, “A rapist is more innocent than a rape victim who chooses to have an abortion”(Johnson, Los Angeles Times 2015). Some other stories of GBV that reflect pure horror include a guilty man who was found innocent of stabbing his wife because he claimed that she was wearing provocative leggings; a father kidnapping his daughter so he can sell her off to another relative through marriage; and a girl who was buried alive as a form of ‘honor’ punishment by her relatives because she was talking to boys. It is also a sad truth that the cases of GBV and domestic violence that make it into court—one out of 30 women interviewed by Ozlem Albayrak and Alp Ardic—are often decided against the female. The unfair treatment can be seen when a judge ignored a woman’s complaints and gave her advice to go home and kiss her husband to solve the issue. If women are not taken seriously in legal situations, they are less likely to feel comfortable and confident in speaking up. Even if a male is charged for his crime of violence, they can get reductions from their sentences if they ‘claim’ that they were …show more content…
The following story is of a woman who lost her life in an honor murder. Her account is unfortunate, but her case has marked a turning point for other women and the authorities in Turkey. Ceyan Sosyal was a nineteen-year old who eloped with her husband. They ended up having a baby girl together, but her husband abandoned her. In order to care for her daughter, she returned back home, “only to be killed by her brother while the rest of the family waited in the living room. Her father walked into the room several times to check why the murder was taking so long”(Shafak, The Guardian 2011). This case has marked a milestone in how Turkey authorities deal with events of GBV and honor killings. Instead of arresting the one who conducted the murder, like how the procedure has always been, all of Sosyal’s family members were taken into custody. This decision can protect more women from honor murders because families will be less willing to conduct killings if they would have to sacrifice themselves to jail time. Typically, families organize the honor murder by using the youngest male in the family as a scapegoat (Shafak, The Guardian 2011). With the Sosyal verdict, there is a higher chance that families will think twice about the situation and avoid perpetrating an honor
Show More

Related Documents: What Is Violence Against Women's Autonomy?

Essay on Finances: Domestic Violence Organization

Coalition Against Domestic Violence, (1978), “National Coalition Against Domestic Violence work to raise awareness about domestic violence; to educate and create programming and technical assistance, to assist the public in addressing the issue, and to support those impacted by domestic violence.” National Coalition Against Domestic Violence has worked to make every home a safe home. “Some of us think that the last significant act of autonomy and defiance by the first wave of the battered women’s movement…

Words 919 - Pages 4

Essay on Ethics in Pornography

Right to Pornography or Right to Violence? Stephanie T Butler 100922639 March 11th, 2014 PHIL 1550 B Matthew MacLennan Pornography, the material that is responsible for many lonely men and women to experience some sort of pleasure, while avoiding the physical, and emotional aspect of a sexual partner. In other words, to avoid the hassle of nagging, judgement, or perhaps the modesty of a potential sexual partner. Many people often view pornography as harmless…

Words 3541 - Pages 15

Reproductive Rights Argumentative Analysis

today. People have not regularly protested until recently, due to new laws and more opinions being vocalized. These laws and opinions cause others to stand up for their rights and start movements. There are two sides to this controversy. One side is against reproductive rights and the other is in favor of reproductive rights. Both sides perform movements supporting their position. Even though there are only two sides, there are many different reasons for one to choose the position he or she is in. A…

Words 1303 - Pages 6

Analysis Of Betty Friedan´s The Feminine Mystique

abortion access and the pursuit of other limited interests only considers one side of a very diverse story, it is possible that they can become effective allies in the fight for a universal notion of justice. As cliché as it sounds, the idea of women’s liberation can only be accomplished through a front that says “We are all in this together,” one that looks beyond differences in identity in order to combat a universal source of oppression: the power structure that is the patriarchy (Martínez 2006:…

Words 1556 - Pages 7

Feminism in India Essay

the pursuit of women's rights within the society of India. Like their feminist counterparts all over the world, feminists in India seek gender equality: the right to work for equal wages, the right to equal access to…

Words 4691 - Pages 19

Prison Violence In Prison

Prison Violence: Prison violence is an urgent and destructive issue (Byrne & Hummer, 2007). According to Griffiths & Murdoch (2014), male prisoners in federal prisons are more likely to be murdered than males outside the prison environment. From 1995 to 2000, the reported violence rate increased by 32 percent (Bryne & Hummer, 2007). However, unofficial data show that violence is eight times higher than what official data illustrates (Bryne & Hummer, 2007). Thus, official data demonstrate that violence…

Words 1561 - Pages 7

Veiled Sentiments By Philippe Bourgois Summary

especially because she had been trying to switch between spending time with the men and spending time with the women, as the two groups were often separated and had very different expectations and behaviors. She ended up focusing her studies on the women’s community, but observed the men’s community and the relationships and codes formed between the two groups from a woman’s perspective. Bourgois also had difficulty with knowing how to understand the stories of both men and women in El Barrio in East…

Words 1946 - Pages 8

Essay on Domestic violence

Domestic violence is a pattern of behavior which involves violence or other abuse by one person against another in a domestic context, such as in marriage or cohabitation. Intimate partner violence is domestic violence against a spouse or other intimate partner. Domestic violence can take place in heterosexual or same-sex relationships. Domestic violence can take a number of forms including physical, emotional, verbal, economic and sexual abuse, which can range from subtle, coercive forms to marital…

Words 7755 - Pages 32

Feminism Falling through the Cracks: Lipstick Junkies Essay

subject often come up short in being holistic. The black or white view is of course missing various shades of gray. While some think that cosmetics are excessively a tool of the patriarchy, others believe the use of cosmetics could be a tool to express autonomy and individuality. The second-wave liberal feminism claims that, "The personal is political" (Hanisch). Personal choices reflect larger political ideals. While critics of liberal feminism put more values in distinctly feminist social actions (Tong…

Words 4710 - Pages 19

Gender Wage Gap

Introduction: The gender wage gap, a persistent global phenomenon, continues to underscore systemic inequities in the workforce. The wage gap not only affects women, but also exacerbates disparities faced by marginalized groups like LGBTQ+ individuals and transgender people. This essay argues that the gender wage gap, when combined with other forms of intersecting discrimination, perpetuates systemic inequities in the workforce. By examining the challenges faced by marginalized groups and drawing…

Words 1974 - Pages 8