Turkey announced its withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention of the Council of Europe on the prevention and combating of violence against women. The decree of the country's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was published in the official government newspaper Resmi Gazete.
At the same time, Vice President Fuat Oktay promised that the country's authorities will continue to fight to protect women's rights. “Our sincere struggle to bring the position of Turkish women in society to the level that she deserves will continue while preserving our traditional values,” he wrote on his Twitter.
The Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence was adopted in 2011. It became the first European agreement to combat domestic violence. Turkey was the first to ratify this document, followed by 33 more countries, Russia is not among them. The convention criminalizes psychological, physical and sexual violence, forced abortion, marriage and sterilization, and sexual harassment.
