Erdogan Says Turkey Will Support Women's Rights

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said the government is supporting women with children so they can stay in the workforce.



"We are making positive discrimination for women in working life," he told a Friday labor union meeting for female workers held in Ankara.



Erdogan's remarks came as the world gets ready to celebrate International Women's Day on March 8.



During his address, the president referred to the Turkish government's new incentives for working women announced by Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Jan. 8 with the aim of creating a better work-life balance.



"We won't let employers block women with children from their maternal duties," said Erdogan.



He said that the government also supported a more active role for women in the labor force, adding: "Children are not obstacles to any work."



"Strong nations are built by strong families, and women are the guarantee of strong families," he said.



Erdogan said that women who wanting to launch their own business would be boosted by government loans and subsidies, along with other support for workplaces employing women.



"Hopefully, we will have more women deputies at the parliament after the June general elections," he added.



"We don't allow discrimination or injustice against women in workplaces or any limitation in their social life," he said.



He also lashed out at women's exposure to violence.



Violence against women has dominated the domestic agenda recently in Turkey after the brutal murder of Ozgecan Aslan, a 20-year-old student killed in the southern province of Mersin in February.



Erdogan harshly criticized those who marginalize and categorize women because of their appearance and clothing.



"Those who ignore women being sold just like property but impose bans on women who cover themselves because of their faith do not have the right to even spell the word 'women'," he said, calling such attitudes "the very abuse of women body."



Erdogan described as "real discriminators" those who take notice of not the victims themselves, but their clothing.



He accused other countries of being "all mouth" regarding women's rights but doing nothing when it comes to millions of Syrian or Iraqi women refugees "who bear burden of the calamity in their country."



"I never consider a country to be 'power' if it does not respect human life," he added.



www.aa.com.tr/en - Ankara