Filiz Kerestecioğlu
"We sang the song 'We Are Here' together enthusiastically for the first time at the demonstration to protest violence against women on 17 May 1987."
Date of Birth: 01/02/1961 1961
Place of Birth: Gölcük, Turkey
Date of Death:
Place of Death:
Burial Site:
Topics
Gallery
Area of Activity
Women's rights activist, lawyer
"Mustafa Durmuş, a Civil Court judge, dismissed in 1987 the divorce application of a woman who had been subjected to violence. Heused the following argument in his decision, although using different words: 'A woman's tummy should not be left without a child and her back without a stick.'
This decision was one of the factors that ignited the Solidarity Against Violence Campaign. We were having unbelievably enthusiastic meetings, and the song was born in this atmosphere. I went to one of these meetings saying I wrote a song', and sang it for the first time there. Later, we sang this song, 'We are here' ("Kadınlar Vardır"), together at the Demonstration Against Violence Against Women on 17 May 1987 in Yoğurtçu Parkı in Istanbul.
When we came to Yoğurtçu Park, the park was full of police. We talked to the police to try to convince them to leave. We said, "If you stay here, women wıll not come here. . At least let the female officers remain somewhere on the side." They went outside the park, but there was still a big number of them. Then, slowly, women started to come in. There are certain stories about this; some say they were 1,000, others say 2,000. But, whatever the number, it was an important event.
There were women wıth very different socialbackgrounds; it was the most exciting, enthusiastic and extraordinary meeting that I had ever seen or participated in.…I remember very well the moment when I said by megaphone 'Let's start walking'... I did not show how nervous I was but my legs were trembling... Finally, we walked out and marched, and that was how the demonstration ended.
After the demonstration, we initiated a lawsuit against the judge. Later, we organized a women's festival. We wrote and published the book Bağır Herkes Duysun (Your voice must be heard), including witnesses' comments. We also established a olidarity network with a contact phone numberfor women subjected to violence.
It was for us very important to stress that the personal is political. Not all the women organizers and participants were feminists, but this demonstration was important in terms of spelling out feminism publically, because feminism was under a great deal of criticism at the time. The demonstration resulted in several permanent improvements.. The women's movement was institutionalised, and as a result of all the effort and debates the Mor Çatı Kadın Sığınağı (Purple Roof Women's Shelter) was established.
The shelter had the positive effect of taking a step towards changing many women's lives. Women subjected to violence needed that step, and that special care. When I look back now, we believe that what we did at the time was completely right and correct. Maybe our demands and what we said in those days were not very extreme demands, but they were a very good start."Listen to "Kadınlar Vardır"
FİLİZ KERESTECİOĞLU
Publications of Filiz Keretecioğlu
(A selection)
İpek İlkkaracan, Pınar İlkkaracan, Filiz Kerestecioğlu, Zülal Kılıç, Ferhan Özenen, Gülşah
Seral (Ed.), Kadının İnsan Hakları Eğitim Programı: Eğitici El Kitabı, Kadının İnsan
Hakları - Yeni Çözümler Derneği Yayını, 2011
Hülya Durudoğan, Fatoş Gökşen, Bertil Emrah Oder, Deniz Yükseker (Ed.), Türkiye'de Toplumsal Cinsiyet Çalışmaları, Koç Üniversitesi Yayınları, 2010.
Sevda Alankuş (Ed.), Kadın Odaklı Habercilik, İstanbul, 2008.
Berivan Kum, Fatma Gülçiçek, Pınar Selek, Yeşim Başaran (Ed.), Özgürlüğü Ararken Kadın Hareketinde Mücadele Deneyimleri, Amargi Yayınları, İstanbul, 2005.
Filiz Kerestecioğu, "Organize 8 Mart", radikal.com.tr/
, 16.3.2003.Awards
Memberships
Education
Istanbul University, Faculty of Law, Istanbul
Contributions to Society
- 1990 Mor Çatı Kadın Sığınağı (Purple Roof Women's shelter and Women's House), co-founder
- 1999 Women's Rights Action Centre of Istanbul Barr Association, founder
- Editor of the magazine Feminist Dergi
- Editing Director of the Law Magazine Güncel Hukuk Dergisi
Family and Friends
Commemorative Projects
Further Reading
"Adaylarla Siyaset Dışı", 02.06.2015, aljazeera.com (02.06.2015).
Deniz Bayram; İlke Gökdemir; Selime Büyükgöze, "Mor Çatı: 'Sığınaksız Bir Dünya İçin' Feminist Sığınak Mücadelesi", 9. 3.2015, Bianet (9. 3.2015).
Murat Çelikkan, "Dayak Aileden Çıkmadır, 8.3. 2012, Bianet (8.3. 2012).
Bahar Çuhadar, Mor Çatı'ya Meşhur Elbise Desteği, Radikal, 8.11.2010,
http://www.radikal.com.tr/Radikal.aspx?aType=RadikalDetayV3&ArticleID=1027909&CategoryID=96
"Feminist Mücadele Yasaları Değiştirse de Zihniyet Aynı Kaldı", kaosgl.com, 21.8.2010, http://www.kaosgl.com/sayfa.php?id=5518
"Devlet, tecavüzlerin sorumluluğundan kurtulamaz", KAZETE, 30.4.2010, http://www.kazete.com.tr/devlet-tecavuzlerin-sorumlulugundan-kurtulamaz_6457.htm
Ümit Türk, "Avukatlar, Siirt'teki Tecavüz olaylarını Protesto etti", haberler.com, 30.4.2010, http://www.haberler.com/avukatlar-siirt-teki-tecavuz-olaylarini-protesto-haberi/
Burçin Belge, "Kadınlar 80 Sonrası Kadın Eylemlerini Anlattı", Bianet, 31.1.2010 http://bianet.org/kadin/kultur/119760-kadinlar-80-sonrasi-kadin-eylemlerini-anlatti (3.3.2012)
Nazan Özcan, "Feminizm Daha Çok Karşı Söz Üretmeli", Radikal, 11.1.2009, odp.org, http://www.odp.org.tr/resimler/ekler/c4b761a28b734fe_ek.pdf
"12 Eylül Sonrası İlk Eylem: Dayağa Hayır", hafif.org, 26.9.2009, http://www.hafif.org/yazi/12-eylul-sonrasi-ilk-eylem
Yasemin Öz, "Güldünya Şarkıları'na Feminist Bir Dinleyici Yorumu", Biamag, 13.12.2008, http://bianet.org/biamag/kadin/111343-guldunya-sarkilarina-feminist-bir-dinleyici-yorumu
"Güldünya Şarkıları", Wikipedia, http://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%BCld%C3%BCnya_%C5%9Eark%C4%B1lar%C4%B1
"20. Yılda Yoğurtçu Parkında", femininst.blogcu, 2007, http://feminist.blogcu.com/20-yilda-yogurtcu-parkinda/1595603
"Dayağa karsı 20 yıllık mücadele", KAZETE, 2007, http://arsiv.kazete.com.tr/sayilar/2007/61/?bolum=haberler&sayfa=toplum05
Emel Armutçu, "Türkiye'de Feminist hareket", Hürriyet, 13.5.2007, http://arama.hurriyet.com.tr/arsivnews.aspx?id=6505867
Emine Özcan, "İstanbul Barosunda Kadınlara Yüzde 50 Kota!", Bianet, 19. 9. 2006, http://bianet.org/bianet/bianet/85411-istanbul-barosunda-kadinlara-yuzde-50-kota--2
Özgür Erbaş, "İstanbul barosu kadın merkezine darbe", çağdaşavukatlat.com, 23.01.2005, http://cagdasavukatlar.org/yazdir.asp?id=165
"Güldünya Mahkemesinde Tartışma Çıktı", Hürriyet, 3.11.2004, http://hurarsiv.hurriyet.com.tr/goster/printnews.aspx?DocID=270119
Filiz Koçali, "15. yılında Dayağa Karşı Dayanışma Yürüyüşü", Bianet, 09 Nisan 2003, http://bianet.org/kadin/medya/10137-15-yilinda-dayaga-karsi-dayanisma-yuruyusu
"İsviçre'yi yine örnek alın", Hürriyet, 30.1.1999, http://arama.hurriyet.com.tr/arsivnews.aspx?id=-60493
"Yürüyüşün Hikayesi", Pazartesi, October 1987, p. 4.
Sources
Quoted Souces:
- See the "Further Reading" section
- Berivan Kum, Fatma Gülçiçek, Pınar Selek, Yeşim Başaran (Ed.), Özgürlüğü Ararken Kadın Hareketinde Mücadele Deneyimleri, Amargi Yayınları, İstanbul, 2005, s. 262.
- Yasemin Öz, "Güldünya Şarkıları'na Feminist Bir Dinleyici Yorumu", Biamag, 13.12.2008.
- Filiz Koçali, "15. yılında Dayağa Karşı Dayanışma Yürüyüşü", Bianet, 09 Nisan 2003.
Source of Visual Images:
- Private archive of Filiz Kerestecioğlu
- Private archive of Meral Akkent
Announcement
Filiz Kerestecioğlu would like you to donate any visuals you may have from the Demonstration Against Violence organised in Yoğurtçu Parkı on 17 May 1987 to be used in this website. Thank you!
Acknowledgments
The Women's Museum Istanbul would like to thank Filiz Kerestecioğlu for her support in compiling this introductory page .
Translation into English: Faruk Kural, Istanbul Editing: Lynn Maichle, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA ©2012 Meral Akkent