Wan (Van)- In Türkiye, violence against women, femicide, and suspicious deaths of women are on the rise, policies of impunity and the government's misogynist statements normalize male violence. Women think that the reason for the increase in male violence is the policies of the government, calling on all women to organize against violence and the policies of the government.

‘The government wages a war against women’

Hamiyet Pak, one woman in the city of Van, located in eastern Türkiye, thinks that the reason for the increase in femicide is the policies of the government that does not recognize women’s rights and interferes in women’s lifestyles.

“Every day, thousands of women are subjected to male violence. Why don't women and men have the same rights? Men can do everything that they want but women are said, ‘you cannot do’ while they shoulder all burdens; they take care of children and do the housework. The government always wages a war against women, targeting them. Recently, the president of religious affairs explained what women should wear. Women should choose what they wear, not men. Such statements cause women to become the target. Their statements pave the way for men to say ‘I will kill you if you wear such clothes’. Women are killed and subjected to all forms of violence such as domestic, verbal and economic violence.”

‘The cause of suicide in women is male violence’

Hamiyet Pak pointed to the recent increase in suspicious deaths and suicides among women and said, “Many femicide cases are recorded as ‘suicide’. The cause of suicide in women is male violence. Women should resist all forms of gender-based violence. Women should participate in the labor force to have economic independence.”

“Women are victims of femicide every day,” Eda Nanto, another woman of Van, said, stressing that women are subjected to all forms of violence such as physical, psychological and economic violence. “Women are subjected to violence everywhere; at home, at work and in the streets. In the first six months of 2025, 136 women were killed by men and 145 others died under suspicious circumstances (in Türkiye). Laws must protect women, the perpetrators should go unpunished. Women are now afraid to go out. But women should not forget that they are not alone. We are stronger together.”

‘Women must organize’

Eda Nanto called on women to “organize” against the increase in gender-based violence. “As women, we are never alone. In our society, women feel that they are powerless but they must realize their own strength. We demand a safer environment, we want to go out without fear and work in a safe workplace. Women must organize and become stronger.”

‘If women are not free, society cannot be free’

“For 21 years, femicide and violence against women has been on the rise because of the policies of the AKP (Justice and Development Party),” said Edibe Babur. “Every woman represents a meaningful life for us. I want to call on women to learn their rights and express themselves. Women are the cornerstones of society. Abdullah Öcalan says, ‘If women are not free, society cannot be free’.”

‘The AKP should give up its dirty policies on women’

Edibe Babur also called on the AKP to give up its dirty policies on women and on women to resist these policies. I call on women to receive support from other women when they feel powerless. Femicide is political.”