Gender equality triggers suicides, Turkish PM says

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu linked "mechanical equality" in gender relations in developed countries to higher suicide rates, in a speech delivered on December 4, Hurriyet Daily News reports.

"Why is the Gross National Product in most developed countries – I don’t want to name it but in Scandinavian countries and in many other countries – at the highest level on one side [GDP], but the suicide rate is also at the highest level there. Why?” Davutoğlu asked, before citing the system of "mechanical equality” in gender relations.

Speaking at a meeting hosted by the women’s branch of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), the prime minister stressed the importance of "motherhood" and described his government as a "champion" on the matter.

The prime minister also touched on the issue of violence against women. “Whoever uses violence against women, he actually displays his own weakness and dishonor. No matter if it is among the family, even by a father against his daughter in the form of a slap [in the face] as sign of compassion, it will leave deep traces in the hearts of those children,” Davutoğlu said.

“No matter if it on the street, against a woman who is considered weak, all of this violence is a direct assault on human honor, and fighting against this assault is a mission for all of us,” he added.

Women’s rights activists and lawyers often criticize the AKP government, which was led by then-Prime Minister, now-President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, from 2003 until he was elected to the presidency in August, for the increasingly conservative and authoritarian political culture they say it is fostering, Hurriyet notes.