45 men protected from violence, minister says

ANKARA - Anatolia News Agency

Men prepare meal at a shelter house in central Anatolian Konya province which is opened by an association. DHA photo

Forty-five men across Turkey are being protected from domestic violence, while one in the southern province of Adana is using the “panic button” for added security, according to Family and Social Policies Minister Fatma Şahin, who stressed that her ministry was not only providing protection to women. 

In addition, 23 men received support from the KOZA-center for the prevention and monitoring of violence. 

Şahin said that in some cases men were the victims of domestic abuse. “We cannot generalize that all women are victims and all men are suspects,” she said. 

Shelters for men to be open in Istanbul, İzmir

The minister said the number of women’s shelters had doubled in a year, adding that work was also being done on providing similar houses for men. “We will open men’s shelter houses in Istanbul and İzmir soon,” she said. 

“We will see if will be able to meet the demand when we open shelters [for men] in these two cities,” said Şahin, adding that the majority of the demand came from the big cities. 

The shelters will be particularly aimed at men whose life is in danger and men who are exposed to domestic violence and have no other place to live, according to Şahin. 

Meanwhile, the new “Electronic Support System Pilot Practice” system, widely known as the “panic button,” has been introduced in Adana and Bursa. So far, just one man in Adana is using this system. 

“We are responsible for protecting and monitoring the needs of all members of the family, including men, women and children. When we receive these demands, we use our institutional capacity for providing shelter and the psychological and physical needs for men. Also, men suffering from the use of alcohol and drugs or those who need economic or legal support also apply to our center,” said Şahin. 

“As the ministry, we have to protect men and women when they need it. We are working for the ordering of this society, both for men and women,” she added.