A report from the Turkish Federation of Women’s Associations dropped in September 2025, and the numbers are brutal. In just nine months, 290 women were killed by men. Almost half of those murders happened in their own homes. The one place they’re supposed to be safe.
The report points to weak laws, poor protection, and Turkey’s pullout from the Istanbul Convention as the main reasons behind this surge. But instead of fixing the problem, the government is pushing “family values” while cutting back on the very protections women need. The message is then becaome in Turkey, tradition comes before women’s lives.
Turkey walked away from the Istanbul Convention in July 2021. Since then, research shows that around 65 more women are being killed every year, most of them by partners or ex-partners. Last year, 394 women were murdered by men, with another 259 dying in suspicious circumstances. This is the worst numbers since records started in 2010. Back in 2011, when Turkey first signed the Convention, femicides actually went down compared to the year before. That’s the only time that’s happened.
When Turkey took women’s protection seriously, fewer women died. When it backed out, the deaths went up. Officials claimed the Convention promoted homosexuality and didn’t fit Turkish values. What kind of “family values” are worth defending if they mean more women get killed? The Federation’s data shows 420 women were murdered in 2024 alone. Over a third were killed by family members, and 101 were targeted while trying to leave or during divorces. Another group, We Will Stop Femicide, found that in just July and August of this year, 65% of femicide victims were killed by male relatives, and most of them at home.
The idea that leaving the Istanbul Convention protects families doesn’t hold up. The Convention doesn’t attack families. It threatens men who think they can control, abuse, or kill women with no consequences. By calling women’s rights an attack on Turkish culture, the government has given cover to abusers and taken away one of the few tools that could actually hold them accountable.
Then there’s the bitter irony of 2025 being named the “Year of the Family.” Women’s groups are furious, and for good reason. Canan Güllü, who leads the Federation of Women’s Associations, said: “This should have been the Year of Stopping Femicide, not the Year of the Family.” That’s what would have actually made women feel safer. As a protest, activists from We Will Stop Femicide plastered government “Family Year” displays with photos and names of femicide victims.
At the core of this crisis is a justice system that lets killers off the hook. Law No. 6284, passed in 2012, was meant to offer protection orders, restraining orders, and support for domestic violence survivors. On paper, it looks solid. In reality,.Human Rights Watch found that even though more protection orders are being issued, they’re barely enforced. Restraining orders, when they’re given at all, often last just weeks, even in high-risk cases. Violations are ignored, and police don’t keep track of repeat offenders.
As a result, men under restraining orders kill their victims anyway. Courts hand out lighter sentences for reasons like “unjust provocation” or “good behavior,” often citing excuses like “she was unfaithful,” “they had a fight,” or even “she dressed the wrong way.” Judges have even used a woman’s refusal to do housework or her choice to wear a tie as reasons to go easy on her killer.
The issue isn’t bad laws then. It’s a system that doesn’t take violence against women seriously. Authorities rarely investigate when officials fail to protect women, even when they know those women are in danger. More and more, victims and their families are turning to social media to beg for police help. Sometimes it works, but it shouldn’t have to come to that.
Turkey has turned its back on international oversight, declared a “Family Year” that glorifies the same institution where most femicides occur, and let courts hand out slap-on-the-wrist sentences to killers. At least 290 women dead in the first nine months of 2025 alone, while officials talk about family values and dodge responsibility.
Women in Turkey deserve better than being reduced to statistics. They deserve to live without fear.