{"id":36718,"date":"2026-04-21T21:21:55","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T21:21:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/36718\/"},"modified":"2026-04-21T21:21:55","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T21:21:55","slug":"president-erdogan-marks-march-8-calls-for-stronger-role-for-women","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/36718\/","title":{"rendered":"President Erdo\u011fan marks March 8, calls for stronger role for women"},"content":{"rendered":"

President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan on Saturday marked International Women\u2019s Day on March 8, emphasizing women\u2019s vital role in T\u00fcrkiye\u2019s development while outlining new measures to expand parental leave and reiterating the government\u2019s commitment to combating violence against women.<\/p>\n

Speaking at an iftar program themed \u201cWomen\u2019s Initiative in Sustainable Development\u201d held in Istanbul and organized by the Ministry of Family and Social Services, Erdo\u011fan highlighted the importance of strengthening women\u2019s participation in social, economic and political life.<\/p>\n

Erdo\u011fan expressed solidarity with women facing hardship across different regions, including mothers who lost their children in conflicts and violence. He conveyed condolences to Iranian mothers mourning daughters who had been sent to school but later lost their lives, saying Turkish women share their grief.<\/p>\n

He also paid tribute to mothers of fallen soldiers, describing them as symbols of resilience, and extended greetings to women affected by crises in Gaza, Syria, Yemen and Sudan, as well as to those living under poverty or conflict in other parts of the world.<\/p>\n

Erdo\u011fan said women are often the most affected by conflicts, economic inequality and discrimination worldwide. He argued that the global consumption system frequently targets women\u2019s dignity and exploits women\u2019s labor, while social discrimination rooted in harmful traditions continues to disproportionately affect them.<\/p>\n

\u201cWherever there is a fire, we try to carry water, wherever there is a wound, we try to apply a remedy,\u201d Erdo\u011fan said, emphasizing that women play a central role in protecting T\u00fcrkiye\u2019s humanitarian values.<\/p>\n

Erdo\u011fan said women and men should be seen as complementary parts of society rather than divided by gender-based distinctions.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnyone who commits violence against women or children has failed in humanity,\u201d Erdo\u011fan stated, underlining that both rights and responsibilities in society belong equally to women and men.<\/p>\n

Erdo\u011fan highlighted several policy measures implemented to strengthen women\u2019s participation in public life.<\/p>\n

According to figures he shared, the female labor force participation<\/a> rate increased from 27.9% to 34.7% during the period of his government, while women\u2019s employment rose from 25.3% to 31.7%.<\/p>\n

He also pointed to improvements in political representation, noting that the number of women in parliament increased from 24 in 2002 to 119 in the latest elections, raising women\u2019s representation to nearly 20%.<\/p>\n

Erdo\u011fan added that restrictions once limiting women\u2019s access to public-sector careers had been removed, enabling greater participation in fields such as academia, administration, the judiciary and the military.<\/p>\n

Addressing violence against women, Erdo\u011fan reiterated the government\u2019s \u201czero tolerance\u201d approach.<\/p>\n

He cited legal reforms introduced since 2005, including amendments to the Turkish Penal Code and the implementation of Law No. 6284 on the Protection of the Family and the Prevention of Violence Against Women.<\/p>\n

Additional measures include the establishment of specialized courts, expanded penalties for crimes targeting women, and support mechanisms such as shelters, social service centers and the KADES emergency support application.<\/p>\n

Following the event, First Lady Emine Erdo\u011fan shared a message on social media about the March 8 International Women\u2019s Day iftar program.<\/p>\n

In her post, Emine Erdo\u011fan said she was pleased to attend the program held under the theme \u201cWomen\u2019s Initiative in Sustainable Development,\u201d noting that the gathering brought together accomplished women from the fields of business, civil society, arts and sports.<\/p>\n

She congratulated the participants for their achievements and wished them continued success, emphasizing the importance of women who lead through their work and break new ground in their respective fields.<\/p>\n

\"\"\/<\/p>\n

\n The Daily Sabah Newsletter\n <\/p>\n

\n Keep up to date with what\u2019s happening in Turkey,
\n it\u2019s region and the world.\n <\/p>\n

SIGN ME UP\n <\/p>\n

\n You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
\n This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan on Saturday marked International Women\u2019s Day on March 8, emphasizing women\u2019s vital role in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":36719,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16467],"tags":[24125,24122,24124,7098,24123],"class_list":{"0":"post-36718","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-recep-tayyip-erdogan","8":"tag-emine-erdogan","9":"tag-march-8","10":"tag-president-erdogan","11":"tag-recep-tayyip-erdogan","12":"tag-womensday"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@people\/116444800276343323","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36718"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36718\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36719"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36718"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}