Turkey's Women Journalists Release March 8 Declaration
* Kadın Gazeteciler Takipte (Women Journalists In Pursuit) Group, working on the Ö.C. sexual harassment case in Sakarya, 22 November 2012.
Kadın Gazeteciler Takipte (Women Journalist In Pursuit), a group of women journalists across Turkey's media organizations, made a public declaration today, condemning male violence and pledging in the pursuit of masculine discourse in Turkey's media.
"Today marks International Women's Day.
“While you are reading this, thousands of women across the globe receive physical/sexual/emotional violence from their lovers, husbands and fathers. The violence that men exercise in order to preserve/enhance their patriarchic order does not only result in the death of dozens of women every day, but also leave physical and psychological traces on them.
"Some people observe the International Women's Day as if it is only about sales in cosmetics, while others give wrong messages due to their misunderstanding of March 8.
"As a part of our profession, we have no tolerance against media images that reproduce women's victimization.
"In order to expose the horror and ugliness of male violence, we don't need any discourse or images that depict the victimization of women.
"On the contrary, we strongly believe that male violence must be exposed via its doers - which are men.
"We know very well that male violence is not always as visible as we see the images of battered women in the media.
"Due to the twisted mentality we have described above, authorities demand rape victims to 'document' the violence they have been put through.
"But we want say it aloud, male violence is not as you know it!
"As women journalists, we are aware of the dangerous paths that lead to the re-victimization of women.
"Therefore, we would like to let you know that we will be following all incidents caused by male violence and the masculine discourse through which they are narrated in Turkey's media.
"In the occasion of March 8, we invite you to be aware of violence against women, not only on the theory but also in real life."
The declaration was signed by: Burcu Karakaş, Müjgan Halis, Nilay Vardar, Çiçek Tahaoğlu, Elif İnce, Selin Asker, Semra Pelek, Burcu Aktaş, Ezgi Başaran, Melis Apaydın, Burcu Aydındağ, Fersun Yelken, Miraç Zeynep Özkartal, Pınar Aktaş, Öznur Turalıoğlu, Zeynep Karamustafa, Umay Aktaş Salman, Nazan Özcan, Evrim Kepenek, Kübra Akalın, Pınar Yurtsever, Öznur Kaymak, Ceyda Ulukaya, Arzu Demir, Ruken Tuncel, Ayça Söylemez, Bilge Eser, Bahar Çuhadar, Elif Ekinci, Beril Eski, Nihan Bora, Sevgim Denizaltı, Rengin Arslan, Elem Tuğçe Oktay, İpek İzci, Tuğba Mezararkalı, Pınar Öğünç, Sevda Karaca, Özge Ayaz, Gülşah İmrek, Şenay Kumuz, Yurdagül Şimşek, Mehveş Evin, Aysun Yazıcı, Gülfem Karataş, Meltem Günay, Demet Bilge, Elif Türkölmez, Esra Açıkgöz, Emine Özcan, Elçin Yıldıral, Kumru Başer.