Why are child abuse cases rising in Turkey?
According to the Turkish Justice Ministry’s recently published annual crime statistics, the number child sexual abuse cases increased 33 percent in 2022 compared to the previous year.
Noting comprehensive child abuse data remains difficult to access, experts on the subject told Turkey recap it remains unclear whether the recent spike was due an increase in abuse itself or an increase in legal proceedings initiated following incidents of abuse.
Though more broadly, professionals in related fields said the trend lines point to a lack of effective policies to protect minors and the ongoing perception of impunity for abusers, who often face limited consequences despite clear evidence of their crimes.
The figures come at a time of renewed national attention on the issue as a result of the ongoing “child bride case” in which a six-year-old girl was married off by her father, a religious sect leader.
More recently, concerns over the safety and vulnerability of children have also increased following the Feb. 6 earthquakes, after which a Parliamentary Earthquake Investigation Commission reported 1,118 surviving children were missing or potentially abducted in Turkey’s impacted region.
During the same period, Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs, Diyanet, made a controversial statement declaring it religiously acceptable to seek marriage with adopted children, including surviving orphans who lost their families in the earthquakes.
Reflecting on recent trends, Senem Gözel, a psychologist and founder of the Trauma and Recovery Association (Travma ve İyileşme Derneği), said frequent acquittal decisions handed down in child abuse trials and the government’s 2021 withdrawal from the İstanbul Convention, an international treaty preventing and combating violence against women, have both been detrimental to creating a safe environment for children.
“This increase [in cases] is not surprising because we see the government is not doing any serious work against child abuse,” Gözel told Turkey recap. “In addition to [lax policies], we occasionally witness statements from state officials that justify child abuse.”
“Impunity is a kind of regime”
Ezgi Koman, a child development specialist and co-founder at the FISA Child Rights Center (FİSA Çocuk Hakları Derneği), said the lack of government data systems regarding children's abuse cases complicates monitoring efforts.
“If so many children are still exposed to sexual violence, there is of course a lack of policy,” Koman said, adding Turkey signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990.
“From that date on, it has been necessary to protect children from all kinds of neglect, abuse and ill-treatment. And this data is an indication that the state policies are not able to protect them,” she continued.
Koman went on to say unless there is a particularly “cruel” act reported online or in the mainstream media, there’s usually an insufficient reaction to cases of child abuse in Turkish society.
“When talking about child abuse, it is very difficult to bring the concepts of sexuality and a child together,” Koman told Turkey recap. “Society's view of sexuality may also have an effect on this.”
She continued, “We can only see cases of neglect, abuse and violence related to children on society’s main agenda when a 'cruel' action is taken. So, almost all other types of abuse can be perceived as more 'acceptable' or even worse, 'legitimate',” she said, referring to the partial acceptance of domestic violence as a disciplinary tool.
Saying Turkey’s "regime of impunity" should end as soon as possible, Koman noted gaps in protective measures can be observed in many areas, including in combating violence against women.
“Current laws are not child-centric. In many judicial processes, a system that defends the perpetrator, not the child, still persists,” she said. “The consent of the child can still be questioned, or a disabled child can be asked 'why he/she did not shout' during sexual abuse.”
Koman added, “Just like in cases of violence against women … impunity is a kind of regime, and this manifests itself in every field.”
“Children into a siege”
Nuray Türkmen, a member of the Children's Commission of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) said many kinds of economic, social, cultural and political pressures can impact children’s vulnerability to sexual abuse.
“There is a linear relationship between child marriage or child employment and child abuse,” Türkmen told Turkey recap. “On the other hand, when we consider that everyone in this country is impoverished except the rich, and most children are not given an education even though they attend school, almost every area of social life … draws children into a siege.”
Türkmen said she thought the prevalence of child sexual abuse was at least partly due to Turkish society’s refusal to accept the occurrence of such incidents, often resulting in the silencing of assault survivors.
“Preventing abuse in the family, school, home and social life areas is also related to the strength of local government services,” Türkmen said, adding that establishing children's rights councils “in each neighborhood can enable children to build their own social existence against the problems they experience.”
“Hell for children”
Journalist Mustafa Hoş, who reports on child abuse cases in sects and institutions affiliated with religious congregations, said education policies as well as unchecked sect dynamics leave children unprotected and can pave the way for cases of child abuse.
Just like the İstanbul Convention, Hoş said some groups in Turkey have started targeting the Lanzarote Convention, formally known as the Council of Europe’s Convention on the Protection of Children Against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, to which Turkey is a signatory.
“Targeting the Lanzarote Convention … clearly shows the darkness of the country,” Hoş told Turkey recap, adding beyond abuse cases, many children are routinely denied access to a well-rounded education and nutritious foods, which taken all together, he said, made Turkey a “hell for children”.
Hoş continued, noting children’s vulnerability to abuse increases when they are taken out of school and placed in the labor market to help support their families.
“The exploitation of [child] labor is driven by social acceptance,” he said. “Everyone is happy except the child. It's a complete parent-employer-state triangle. It's almost normalized.”
Powerful tools
To help raise awareness of child, early and forced marriages, Turkish rapper Şahıs produced the song Onlar Çocuk; Gelin Değil (They are Children; Not Brides), in partnership with United Nations Women's Turkey and Gender Equality Monitoring Association (CEID).
“I wanted to express this issue, to take into account the current dynamics, to reach more people, to create something for the benefit of children,” Şahıs told Turkey recap. “I know this problem will not be solved immediately. However, I think it is valuable to be able to raise a voice and bring such issues to various platforms.”
Noting the creative arts can be a powerful tool in helping survivors express themselves and raising awareness of child abuse indicators, Şahıs also said that addressing impunity and a general lack of knowledge on the subject were the biggest obstacles to making progress in the near future.
“The state must fulfill the necessary obligations to empower abused children,” Şahıs said. “We should be able to make an effort to ensure that these mechanisms work properly in every field so that we can create a rights-based awareness in the society.”
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Diego Cupolo, co-founder + editor @diegocupolo
Gonca Tokyol, freelance journalist @goncatokyol
Ingrid Woudwijk, freelance journalist @deingrid
Verda Uyar, freelance journalist @verdauyar
Gökalp Badak, editorial intern @gklpbdk
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