MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

Amed – The facts that emerged after the killings of women in Turkey reveal the dimension of male violence. Although women apply to many state institutions to protect them from male violence, they are killed after being left alone because the authorities do not take the necessary measures to protect them. The court decisions in femicide cases reveal another dimension. The facts that emerged after the murder of Pelda Karaduman show us the lack of law protecting women in Turkey.

She was subjected to sexual abuse after being kidnapped

Pelda Karaduman was kidnapped and sexually abused in 2012 by Hüseyin Oruç when she was 14 years old. She became pregnant but she miscarried. Her family rescued her after being held in a house for months by Hüseyin Oruç and she was forced into religious marriage with him. She was subjected to violence by Hüseyin Oruç from 2012 to 2017. During her marriage, she was subjected to violence and rape many times.

He was sentenced to prison for intentionally killing Pelda Karaduman

In 2017, Hüseyin Oruç killed Pelda Karaduman with a gun. The legal process of the murder case started in 2019. Hüseyin Oruç was sentenced to 18 years in prison by the Diyarbakır 7th High Criminal Court. After the decision was reversed by the Court of Appeal, Hüseyin Oruç was retried and sentenced to life imprisonment for intentionally killing Pelda Karaduman.

He claimed that he had not known her age

Before the murder case, an investigation was launched against Hüseyin Oruç, who kidnapped Pelda Karaduman in 2012, after her family filed a criminal complaint against him. An indictment was prepared against Hüseyin Oruç, who kidnapped and raped Pelda Karaduman for days, on charges of "sexually abusing a child” and “deprivation of liberty”. In his statement, Hüseyin Oruç said, “I did not know her age.” At that time, Pelda Karaduman was 14 years old.

She was killed three years after the acquittal of Hüseyin Oruç

Despite medical reports and the statements of Pelda Karaduman’s family, the Diyarbakır 7th High Criminal Court ruled the acquittal of Hüseyin Oruç from all accusations because “Pelda Karaduman looked older than her age”. Pelda Karaduman was killed by Hüseying Oruç three years after his acquittal.

“Everyone knows that a person going to elementary school is under the age of 18”

Despite the report issued by the Forensic Medicine Institution, ignoring the statement of the victim by the court constitutes a right violation. In his statement, Hüseyin Oruç claimed that he had not known the age of Pelda Karaduman. Hüseyin Oruç is a relative of Pelda Karaduman so he knew that Pelda Karaduman was under the age of 18. In addition, everyone knows that a person going to elementary school is under the age of 18. A university student can be 18 years old or over. If the court had sentenced Hüseyin Oruç to prison, Pelda Karaduman probably would be alive today. The story of Pelda Karaduman shows us how the legal system causes the killings of women in Turkey.