Women and children before the misogynist law

The proposal that featured certain pardons for abusers who married underage girls has been withdrawn back to the commission. 

Yes, that was an achievement. But the matter is not closed.

Four months ago, the Constitutional Court (AYM) annulled a clause in Article 103 of the Turkish Penal Code about sexual abuse against children which said all kinds of sexual acts against a child who is under the age of 15 will be considered as sexual abuse. The high court had given six months to the government to make a new legal arrangement.  

The high court had given six months to the government to make a new legal arrangement. 

 Last week, a bill that was submitted to parliament and was approved the other day, on the sexual abuse of children, was based on this decision made by the AYM.

This decision of the high court was justified because the perpetrator was also a minor, then the minimum penalty was too high (16 years). In other words, a case between peers should be assessed differently than a case when an adult and a child's abuse was in question, the AYM thought. 

The decision had foreseen a legal arrangement where the penalty would be gradual in a case where the perpetrator was also a minor, but this has totally been disregarded in the law. 

The penalty was increased if the victim is under the age of 12, but women's organizations are currently protesting this, because this means "the age of consent" has been lowered to 12. They are right because of the current situation of the justice system. In courts, where misogynist mentality dominates, there is a possibility that this law will be interpreted as impunity with the excuse that there was consent between the ages 12 and 15. Now that religious marriages, conducted in...