Turkish president vows to continue combating violence against women

By Kemal Karadag and Merve Gul Aydogan Aglarci

ANKARA (AA) – Announcing a new action plan, the Turkish president on Thursday vowed to continue combating violence against women.

“We are making the fight (against violence) even stronger with our new action plan,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the 4th National Action Plan Promotion Meeting on Combating Violence Against Women in the Turkish capital Ankara.

The first goal of the new plan is to review Turkey's legislation on combating violence and its effective implementation, he explained.

“Our fight against violence against women will not begin with the Istanbul Convention, nor does it end with our withdrawal from it,” Erdogan added, referring to a European treaty which Turkey left on July 1, citing incompatibility with local values.

Under a decree signed by Erdogan, the expiration date of the 2011 Istanbul Convention, which was annulled in Turkey earlier this year, fell on July 1.

Turkey withdrew from the convention on March 19, arguing that the pact conflicted with local traditions and that Turkish laws provide ample protection to women already.