Female-priority metro carriages draw criticism in Turkey's Bursa

A new project that introduced female-priority carriages on intra-city trains in the northwestern Turkish province of Bursa has drawn criticism from some locals.  

"You cannot end sexual harassment by putting women in separate carriages. Women and men come together in other environments too. You cannot avert it this way," passenger Irmak Aslan said. 

A 40-year-old male passenger, who was traveling with his son in the "female-priority" carriage, said he wanted to show his reaction against the newly enacted regulation.

"I waited for the subway to arrive with the 'priority for women' sign. Would I not be allowed to get on the same carriage with my daughter if I had one?" he said. 

The Bursa Municipality has decided to give priority in the last carriages of intra-city metro trains to the use of women, placing signs on the stations' platforms indicating: "The carriage for which our female passengers are prioritized."

Bursa Mayor Recep Altepe said the project was in line with women passengers' demands. 

"There has been such a demand [from women] for many years now. So we said, 'You may have fewer problems if you travel in the last carriage, which is usually more empty," Altepe told daily Hürriyet.

The project has drawn strong criticism from many women's groups in Turkey. 

"Bursa is one of the first municipalities to sign the Council of European Municipalities and Regions' [CEMR] agreement on the equality of women and men in local life agreement. It has set up equality centers across all of its districts. So why is it doing this right now?" said Dilek Üzümcüler from the Mor Salkım Women's Solidarity Association said.

A number of women's organizations set up a committee and requested a...