Öznur Değer

 

ANKARA - The women who wanted to make a statement before the trial in which 33 women were tried the previous day, but were detained by battering, underlined that they would not give up on the Istanbul Convention and said: "What we see there is how much the state legitimizes violence and that it is the perpetrator of violence. The state has now become a criminal organization."

 

33 women, including Mesopotamia Agency (MA) reporter Eylem Akdağ, were detained in the police attack in the Istanbul Convention action in the Kolej part of Ankara's Çankaya district on August 12, 2020. Women were subsequently charged with "opposition to the Law on Meetings and Demonstrations No. 2911" and lawsuit filed. The first hearing of the case was held on June 7 at the Ankara 28th Criminal Court of First Instance. Before the hearing, the members of the Ankara Women's Platform who wanted to make a press statement in front of the Ankara Courthouse were attacked by the police, and eight women were battered and detained. The fact that most of the women were women who were tried in the case caused the hearing to be postponed, while the women reacted to the police violence.

 

‘The state is the perpetrator of violence’

 

Tuğba Koçer, a member of the Women's Defense Network, who was battered by the police while they were trying to make a statement in front of the courthouse and who was tried in the case, stated that they were defending the Istanbul Convention for women to live and be safer on August 12. Stating that they wanted to create a chain of life for this purpose, Tuğba noted that they were detained under torture and a lawsuit was filed against them. Tuğba said: "While we were trying to make a press statement for the case, we faced a harsh intervention and we had friends who were detained and beaten during the intervention. The women who were tried in the case were not taken to the courthouse. What we see there is how much the state legitimizes violence and the state is the perpetrator of violence. No matter how much they attack, we will not give up on our lives or the Istanbul Convention. By defending each other with the bond of sisterhood, we will fill the streets, squares, fields, houses, and all areas of our lives until July 1, by saying, 'We do not give up on the Istanbul Convention'. We don't even care about the pressure of the government and the violence of the police."

 

‘State institutions are surrounded by masculinity’

 

Aysun Gençtanır, a member of the Women's Defense Network, is among those who were battered and detained on the day of the trial. Saying that they were not surprised by this situation, Aysun stated: "All state institutions surrounded by masculinity are like this." Underlining that they are faced with an institution that produces itself from violence, Aysun said: "This convention is implemented as a result of women's struggle. The attack on convention today is not discrete or coincidence. A reflection of the misogyny of the one-man regime. There is also a political reason behind it."

 

‘The state has become a criminal organization’

 

Emphasizing that male dominance is a founding aspect of the regime, Aysun stated that there have been many developments in the political sense recently. Aysun continued her words as follows: "Citizens named Tolga Ağar and Şirin Ünal will become MPs. AKP's MPs and killers. In this country, killers can walk around waving their arms. The Istanbul Convention, on the other hand, tells the state that killers should be prosecuted. We still see the background of this attack today. It sounds unbelievable, but the thing is, when we go to trial, to testify, the state law enforcement is attacking us and saying that we cannot go to testify. It abused its own lawsuit. Article 9 of the Istanbul Convention states that the state should cooperate with non-governmental organizations and women's associations. We see cooperation disappearing. Instead of cooperating, it commits crimes by targeting women's organizations, attacking them, and acting as if they are enemies. The state has now become a criminal organization."

 

‘We will continue our struggle despite police violence’

 

In the statement, Gizem Ünsal, a member of the Women's Defense Network, who was battered, stated that she wanted to participate in the press release held in front of the courthouse to support her friends on trial, but that she was battered and tried to get her away. Noting that her friends who will enter the hearing were also detained again, Gizem said: "We do not give up on our friends, our rights, our lives, or the Istanbul Convention. Despite the police violence, we will continue our struggle. The state, which does not prosecute the killers of women, thinks that it can prosecute the Istanbul Convention. We will be at the Ankara Courthouse on November 26 to support our friends and say, "The Istanbul Convention cannot be put on trial."