Honour Killings and Some Examples from South-Eastern Turkey
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In the Name of Fathers: Honour Killings and Some Examples from 1 South-eastern Turkey Aysan Sev'er, University of Toronto, teaches sociology of gender Introduction and family and writes extensively on sexual harassment, intimate This paper focuses on honour killings (HK) and some partner abuse of women, link between separation and violence, examples from south-eastern Turkey. Examples are selected from cross-cultural forms of wife abuse and extreme violence against court transcripts and local and national media coverage. These women such as "honour killings" and "dowry murders." Her events are rare in Turkey (estimates are 25-75/year), and latest book on women who have left their abusive partners, confined to a small region, but honour crimes kill many Fleeing the House of Horrors, has received the Canadian thousands of women across the world each year. To understand Women's Studies Association 2004 Annual Book Award. She is the cultures where such killings take place, we will have to also the founder and the general editor of Women's Health & analyze dowry and bride-price systems. As the examples from Urban Life journal. south-eastern Turkey demonstrate, the goal of these practices is to control the bodies and sexuality of women. Loopholes in the Abstract criminal justice system often make a mockery of the prosecution Starting from patriarchal power and authority, this article of these heinous crimes. Even in a modernizing, secular state explores the control of girls/women under classic patriarchies, like Turkey, the workings of the criminal justice system are particularly virginity, forced virginity tests and honour killings infused with patriarchal biases. (HK); that is, murder of a woman by her male kin after First, I review some key literature on power and something she has done is interpreted as tainting her family's patriarchy, paying specific attention to "classic patriarchy" honour. The goal of all patriarchies is to control women's (Kandiyoti 1988). A detailed discussion about dowry and freedom, sexuality and reproduction, and older women are bride-price systems, forced virginity tests and HK follows. Then, co-opted to enforce rules on younger women/girls in what I introduce some facts about Turkey, which is a modern Kandiyoti (1988) calls the "patriarchal bargain." Using examples democracy with serious aspirations to European Union from Turkey, a democratic country that aspires to membership membership. However, as the case studies of HK show, there in the European Union, this article proposes a multilevel remain pockets of patriarchal crimes against women. Finally, I approach to bring change to patriarchal systems. make suggestions for change from the international women's Résumé rights perspective and through local initiatives and law reforms. Power "Power" is the ability to assert one's own will on others (Homans 1974). Power is relational since one cannot have it without also having someone or something to have power over. Power is "dormant" and lies within the "ability" of the powerful. He2 may translate the ability into action (influence), or he may force others to submit to his will (coercion). Generally, holders of power do not need force: power is recognized and rarely challenged. Instead, the powerless will try to appease the power holder, so that he does not hurt them (physically). Moreover, the powerless often serve the powerful by labour-intensive farming. The subsistence pattern requires large enforcing rules and punishing the deviants. families and male labour (Kagitcibasi 1982). The key elements Weber (1968) introduces an important trajectory: to the reproduction of classic patriarchy are: patriarchal "authority" is bestowed upon those who possess legitimate households where decision-making is vested in men; patrilineal power. The behaviour of those who have authority is sanctioned tracing of descent and inheritance (preference for sons and the by rules, regulations and laws. Moreover, those in authority are proclivity to curb female inheritance); and patrilocal extended able to stretch the existing rules, and still preserve legitimacy. households (where young women, sometimes child-brides, are Those in authority also benefit from voluntary compliance. Of betrothed). Taken together, these elements skew gender relations course, abuse is possible even when the holder of power has and give unprecedented power to men over women (Kandiyoti authority. Moreover, sexuality often permeates power differences. 1988). Moreover, male power is sanctioned and legitimized. Walby (1989) theorizes patriarchy within six Patriarchy interrelated structures: the mode of production, relations in Patriarchy subsumes power differences that waged labour, the state, male violence, relations in sexuality and systematically occur at the social, legal and cultural levels and culture. What is important is the relentless control of women's bestow authority on men. The term captures the amorphous behaviour and sexuality where violence is a condoned tool of nature of male power and domination in a given society. Male control. Preference for sons translates into domination over authority is so ingrained, unquestionable and effective that it women who bear these sons. Male domination permeates all permeates all other social realities and institutions. Thus, the cultural norms, values and rituals. Women's worth is equated amorphous nature of the term is both a weakness and strength. with marriage and motherhood. As Puri (1998) observes, the Male domination gets so infused into values, norms, behaviour three statuses open for women are: that of some man's virgin and the socio-religious outlook that one can rarely defy that daughter; another man's pious wife; and the self-sacrificing power. Thus, trying to dissect patriarchy into observable pieces mother of sons. Women learn that any deviation from rules can will indeed miss the all-encompassing nature of that power. Frye trigger violence against them. Kate Millet (1970, 44-45) (2000) uses a birdcage analogy to denote the insidious nature eloquently summarizes this vicious cycle: of patriarchy. She says that by examining a single strand of We are not accustomed to associate patriarchy with wire, one can never understand why the bird is trapped. The force. So perfect is its system of socialization, so complete the entrapment can only be understood when individual wires are general assent to its values, so long and so universally has it seen within the network of other strategically placed wires. It prevailed in human society, that it scarcely seems to require is due to this complexity that patriarchy escapes a clear violent implementation... and yet...control in patriarchal societies definition. would be imperfect, even inoperable, unless it had the rule of A particularly vicious type of patriarchy is "classic force to rely upon, both in emergencies and as an ever-present patriarchy" (Kandiyoti (1988). Classic patriarchy spans North instrument of intimidation. Africa, the Middle East (including non-secular Iran and parts of secular Turkey) and South and East Asia (most specifically India, Dowry / Bride-price Systems and Their Consequences Pakistan, Bangladesh and rural China). Thus, classic patriarchy In classic patriarchies, daughters are a burden (Jasam crosses over geopolitical regions and religious boundaries (Islam, 2001). They are seen as an unfair competition for male siblings Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Sikhism, and even because of dowry. Defenders of the system argue that dowry is orthodox pockets of Christian and Jewish faiths).Given the a form of transmission of wealth to females, since patrilineal variation, to argue that a particular religion gives rise to classic inheritance bars women from inheritance. In reality, women patriarchy is over-simplistic. Instead, in strongly patriarchal seldom benefit from dowry since most or all of it gets usurped cultures, the interpretations and practices of any religion come by the patriarchal household. In India, there are many sayings to reflect male domination, privilege and control. that depict the perceived futility of investing in girls, such as Classic patriarchies flourish in agrarian societies with "raising a daughter to watering a neighbour's plant" which (Hegde 1999). Moreover, dowry has taken on crushing require proof of virginity as a condition of marriage and girls proportions as an obligation (Bhattacharya 2004; Puri 1998). can be subjected to forced virginity tests. The required proof Women whose families are reluctant or unable to fulfill these may be a report from a physician (usually a male) about obligations are vulnerable: they may be forced to marry confirming that the hymen is intact. Proof may also involve undesirable men, they may be sent back to their families (which inspection of bloodied sheets after the first night of marriage. makes them a social pariah), beaten or even killed (Jasam 2001; In Turkey, the first night is so important that it has its own Mayell 2002; Shah 1990). It is estimated that 15,000 dowry name (gerdek). In patriarchal regions, older women keep vigil deaths occur in India every year. This estimate is conservative, throughout gerdek for proof of virginity (blood). Moreover, the since most murders are successfully disguised as accidents bride's body may be examined (again, by elder women) for (UNIFEM 2003b). fresh cuts in case she was trying to fool the examiners. These Other patriarchal societies practise "bride price." practices reinforce the belief that women are untrustworthy and Although this practice has been legally banned in Turkey since set women against women. More serious perils await brides who 1926, it is still common in the rural/feudal south-east. The fail such tests. They may be ostracised, sent back, replaced by burden is on the patriarchal household to pay the bride's family a new wife, beaten or even killed (Cindoglu 2000; Mernissi for the marital rights over a daughter. Although one might 2000). think that this system would raise women's status, in practice, women are commodified. What they do, how they dress, where Some Facts about Turkey and Honour Killings in South-eastern they go, who they see, how they act, who they marry..