Turkish female lawmakers dance at Parliament to protest violence

ANKARA

DAILY NEWS photo/ Selahattin SÖNMEZ

Female lawmakers and parliamentary correspondents joined a global Valentine’s Day event that has invited 1 billion women to oppose violence against woman through dancing.

Male members of the Parliamentary Correspondents Association, which organized the event in the Parliament building in parallel with the global One Billion Rising movement, also backed the event.

“There are no parties here today,” said Ayşenur Bahçekapılı, the vice leader of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). “We are all one and saying ‘no’ to violence against women.”

“The world would be a different place if women were free,” said Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy Melda Onur.

Several members of the European Union joined a dance on Jan. 29 ahead of the One Billion Rising day to demonstrate their opposition to violence against women.