District and deputy governors from all over Turkey participated in the "Women and Children's Rights on the Basis of Human Rights Training" organized in cooperation with UNFPA Turkey and the Ministry of Interior. During the training, which lasted for 2 weeks with different groups, many issues such as violence against women, child abuse, stereotyped gender roles, women and child protection services were discussed with the support of experts from different sectors and institutions.
BOLU, TURKEY - While violence against women and harmful practices against children continue to be among the most fundamental and widespread human rights violations all over the world, UNFPA Turkey and the Ministry of Interior continues working in cooperation with the aim of a stronger and more comprehensive struggle for women's and children's rights and equality in every corner of Turkey.
In this context, "Women and Children's Rights on the Basis of Human Rights Training" was organized in Bolu in August for administrative chiefs. Nearly 60 district and deputy governors from all over Turkey attended the training.
During the two-week training, different topics were discussed with all their aspects, from the basic concepts of women's and children's rights to violence against women and children and protection methods; from a multilateral institutional approach to combating violence against women to sociological, psychological and religious perspectives.
In addition to the United Nations and the Ministry of Interior officials, the training sessions were also carried out by experts from the Ministry of Family and Social Services, the General Directorate of Provincial Administration, the General Command of Gendarmerie, the General Directorate of Security, the Union of Municipalities of Turkey, the General Directorate of Child Services, the Turkish Football Federation and various universities. In addition to the presentations by experts, discussions and interactive group activities on the covered issues took place in the training.
Olcay Erkıral Tavas, the Ministry of Interior, Directorate General of Provincial Administrations’ Head of Department, one of the hosts of the training, underlined that violence against women, child abuse and neglect are among the most important social problems: “Our district governors who face the problem in the field and develop solutions to these problems are the strongest link of the state. We are happy to make even a small educational contribution to their struggle on this path.”
Pointing to the results of the training, UNFPA Turkey Gender Equality Program Coordinator Yasemin Kalaylıoğlu evaluated the training with the following: “We have trainers from many different institutions. We use both sociological and psychological approaches. Starting from gender equality, we try to give a perspective on what these concepts are and how the content should be understood.”
Deputy and district governors who participated in the training, on the other hand, think that their theoretical knowledge is strengthened with practical examples and that they will now work more actively in the field on women's and children's rights. “They paved the way for us to activate more than one mechanism that we know about women's rights and children's rights” Trabzon Sürmene District Governor Ahmet Gazi Kaya says. Çanakkale Bozcaada District Governor Bahar Kaya Çelik explains her experience by saying that “We learn a lot about the profession, the law and how we should behave. The biggest reason for me to choose this profession is to touch people's lives; we have such a chance because we can change things”. Batman Deputy Governor Tuğba Polat also mentioned the long-term effects and importance of education: “This training we have received here will enable us to reach many people in the provinces and districts we visit so don't think of me as one person; the things that I will bring where I go will make me thousands."
UNFPA Turkey and the Ministry of Interior work for a stronger and more comprehensive struggle for women's and children's rights in every corner of Turkey with the "Women and Children's Rights on the Basis of Human Rights Training". The training delivered to deputy and district governors and their spouses is planned to continue in the coming months.
