According to official numbers of the General Police Directorate (EGM), 78,488 incidents of domestic violence were registered in the 19 months between February 2010 and August 2011. Considering that these are the incidents that were officially reported, it means that domestic violence in Turkish families happened once every ten minutes.

As reported by Milliyet newspaper, the EGM launched a study together with police directorates of all 81 Turkish provinces to monitor incidents of domestic violence. The number of 78,488 cases of domestic violence within 19 months boils down to 138 incidents per day and approximately six cases per hour which means one incident every 10 minutes.

Forms filled out imprecisely

The study revealed that registration forms related to cases of domestic violence were filled out carelessly by the police units. A study carried out at the Crime Analysis Centre as part of the Main Command and Control Department and the Department of Public Order within the central organization of the EGM brought to light that only 7,078 out of a total of 78,488 incidents were registered with a Domestic Violence Incident Registration Form that was then sent to the capital Ankara.

The General Police Directorate sent a writing on the subject to the provincial police directorates with the request to fully complete the registration forms regarding cases of intentional injury within the family, torture, sexual assault, deprivation from freedom, ill-treatment, violations of obligations stemming from the family law and similar incidents related to violence. (AS/VK)