New charter must reflect women’s perspectives, says family minister

ANKARA

We need to complete mental transformation of men, Şahin says. AA photo

Women’s perspectives should be taken into consideration at every stage of the ongoing efforts to draft a new civilian constitution, Family and Social Policies Minister Fatma Şahin said yesterday.

Şahin’s remarks came in a speech delivered at a meeting on women entrepreneurs organized as part of the Global Entrepreneurship Program of the Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey (TEPAV).
The meeting, titled as “Women Entrepreneurship: Myths and Realities,” was also attended by U.S. Ambassador to Ankara Francis Ricciardone, who highlighted the importance of women’s economic participation for Turkey’s power with regard to competition and growth.

“There is a need to look from women’s perspectives for the civil constitution in front of us. When you consider every single article from the point of view of woman, rather than just in one article, then we will be able to introduce the rule of law standards of the modern and civilized world from a woman’s point of view,” Şahin said.

She said the government had been exerting efforts to have more women in decision making mechanisms in both the private and public sectors, adding that women being more active in all areas would favor the entire society and was important for children’s future too.

“We need to complete the mental transformation of men,” Şahin said.

U.S. Ambassador Ricciardone said Turkey had not yet been able to make full use of its resources, adding that women and girls constituted a significant human resource. He referred to a maxim by the founder of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk: “Everything we see on earth is the product of women.”

Ricciardone said a conscious state policy for the participation of all people in work life had been implemented since the foundation of the Republic.

“Atatürk saw this years ago and steps have been taken in this direction. Providing women’s participation in the economy and increasing their productivity in society will really have a very big influence on Turkey’s competitiveness and growth,” Ricciardone said.