Men Kill 27 Women in March

According to the news from local and national newspapers, news sites and agencies, a compilation made by bianet revealed that male violence left at least 27 women and two infants dead; 9 women and teenage girls raped; 69 women to forced prostitution; 47 women and teenage girls injured; 60 women and teenage girls sexually harassed. 

In the first three months of 2015, male violence left 74 women dead, 24 raped, 100 forced to prostitution and 84 sexually harassed. 

Murder 

In March, men killed 27 women and 2 infants. In addition to these killings, the killers of 2 women whose bodies were found could not yet be determined, and 4 women were mysteriously found dead. 

In March, the murderers’ excuses included reasons like honor, jealousy, their wife not making breakfast or not preparing food. 

One man killed his six-month-old baby because its sex was female. It was claimed the same person had killed his daughter last year. 

Of the 27 women killed in March, 48 percent were killed by their husbands and 22 percent by their lovers: 14 women were killed by their husbands (one by a husband who had been living in a different house, one by a religiously wed husband, 12 by husbands they were officially married to and living with), six women by their lovers, one by a relative who attempted to rape her, one by a brother-in-law, one by an ex-lover, one by an ex-husband, two by their fathers, one by a relative. 

18.5 percent of the women were killed because they either wanted a divorce, resisted reconciliation or refused a marriage proposal. 

18.5 percent of the women killed had lodged a complaint against their killer before the murder. Two of these had withdrawn their complaint due to persistent pleas by their loved ones or threats by the person who was violent with them. 

63 percent of the murders were committed with firearms: 12 women were killed by a gun, three by a hunting rifle, two by a pump-rifle, five by knives, two by strangling, one by slitting her throat, one by battery and one by battery with a hard object.

One of the murderers had been sentenced to 90 days in jail for violence against women. 

Following the incidents, five of the killers committed suicide, and four surrendered to law enforcement. 

The perpetrators of two women’s murders committed in September and October of 2014 were also identified this month. A woman made to marry at an early age committed suicide at 18 years old. 

Murder perpetrator men were aged between 21 and 85, murder victim women were aged between 17 and 79. 

Murder cases were reported in the following cities: Adana (3), Ankara, Antalya (2), Antep (2), Denizli, Diyarbakır, Erzurum (2), İstanbul (3), İzmir (5), Kocaeli, Konya, Malatya, Sivas, Urfa, Van and Yalova. 

The murders where the perpetrator could not be identified were committed in Istanbul and Denizli and the mysterious deaths occurred in Eskişehir, Istanbul, Tekirdağ and Bursa provinces. 

Rape 

In March, men raped nine women and teenage girls, while forcing 69 women to prostitution. 

78 percent of the rapists were men the women/teenage girls were acquainted with: Five women were raped by a friend or a man they knew, one by a man who introduced himself as a man of religion, two by men they did not know, and one teenage girl by her school bus driver. 

44.5 percent of the rape incidents happened at home: Four women and the girl were raped at home, two in a venue where they were forcibly detained, one in a vehicle; venues of two incidences of rape were not specified in the news pieces. 

Rape cases were reported in the following cities: Adana (2), Antalya, Edirne, Istanbul, Kayseri, Osmaniye, Tekirdağ and Zonguldak. 

One of the men who forced women to prostitution was her religiously-wed husband, and one was a lover. 

Forced prostitution cases were reported in the following cities: Adana (3), Denizli (65) and Diyarbakır. 

Battery/Assault 

In March, men injured 47 women and teenage girls. 

Three of the women who experienced male violence had been forcibly married at a young age, and one was a trans sex worker.  

15 percent of the women were assaulted because they wanted a divorce. 10 percent of the women had filed a complaint because they had experienced violence. 

40.5 percent of the women experienced violence by their husbands: 14 of the women were injured by their husbands, 4 by their religiously-wed husbands, 1 by a husband living separate from her, 4 by their lovers, 3 by their male relatives, 1 by their father, 2 by their ex-husbands, 3 by their male coworkers, 1 by her student, 1 by a man she rejected, 2 by men they did not know, 1 by the director of a dormitory she was staying in, and 9 female soccer players by fans. 

Methods that could lead to death were used in 30 percent of the battery/assault incidents in March: Five women were injured with guns, four with knives and other sharp objects, two by torture, one with boiling water, one by being thrown off a balcony, one by battery with an object, and 22 by battery. One female reporter was threatened with physical violence by a male cameraman. Two women were detained by men against their consent.

 One women who endured male violence in March committed suicide, while another attempted suicide. 

Battery/Assault cases were reported in the following cities: Adana (12), Adıyaman, Ağrı, Antalya, Antep (2), Aydın (3), Çanakkale, Diyarbakır (2), Erzurum, Eskişehir (2), İstanbul (2), İzmir, Iğdır (2), Isparta, Kayseri, Kilis, Kocaeli, Malatya, Mersin, Muğla, Ordu, Sakarya, Tekirdağ, Trabzon, Urfa(2), Van and Zonguldak (2). 

Harassment 

In March, men harassed 60 women and young girls. 

43 percent of the sexual harassment cases could be classified as physical harassment, 33 percent as digital harassment, 13 as persistent stalking, 8 percent as verbal harassment, and 1.6 percent as exhibitionism. 

63 percent of the women and girls were harassed by men they did not know, and 25 percent by teachers: 38 women and girls were harassed by men they did not know, 15 by their teachers, 4 by service sector employees, 2 by male coworkers and 1 by her husband living separate from her. 

33 percent of the harassment cases occurred over the phone, 25 percent in school, 18 percent on the street: 15 girls were harassed at school, 11 women and teenage girls on the street, 3 in service venues, 2 in the workplace, 1 in a vehicle, and 20 over the phone. 8 women endured persistent stalking. 

Although a taxi driver who sexually harasses women who get on his cab was found to have been arrested twice before for sexual harassment, the driver was released again after harassing women in March. 

Sexual harassment incidents were reported in the following cities: Antep (12), Bursa, Çorum, Denizli, Edirne, İstanbul (4), İzmir (28), Kütahya, Mersin (8), Muğla, Sakarya and Samsun. 

Regional distribution 

In March of 2015, a total of 212 cases of male violence, murder, attempted murder, harassment, sexual violence, rape and battery were reported in the media.

 All incidents were distributed according to regions as follows: Aegean (50 percent, 107 cases), Mediterranean (16.5 percent, 35 cases), South-Eastern Anatolia (12 percent, 25 cases), Marmara (10 percent, 21 cases), Eastern-Anatolia (5 percent, 10 cases), Black Sea (3 percent, 7 cases), and Central Anatolia (3 percent, 7 cases). (ÇT/PU/KU)