Muslim clergymen told father it was OK to have sexual relations with daughter, survivor reveals

A man identified only as Y.K., who was arrested for the sexual assault of his daughter, justified his behavior with the teachings of Muslim clergymen, the daily Cumhuriyet reported on Dec. 4. The assailant repeatedly told his daughter that the clergymen told him his assault was religiously acceptable, the 17-year-old said in a court hearing.

Friday December 04 2020 10:35 am

A sign reads "Don't protect, don't justify, prosecute!"

Duvar English

A man arrested for sexually assaulting his 17-year-old daughter justified his actions using the words of Muslim clergymen, hodjas, who told him it was religiously acceptable to have sexual relations with his daughter, the daily Cumhuriyet reported on Dec. 4.

Identified only as Y.K., the father was arrested on Aug. 20 after his sister-in-law reported his assault on social media to a women's organization, the Women Solidarity Network (Kadın Dayanışma Ağı), which then alerted law enforcement.

The survivor said, during the case's first hearing on Dec. 3, that Y.K. began his abuse after his wife was shot and killed during a gunfight by a bullet intended for him.

"My father would always say things like, 'The hodjas told me it was acceptable for a father to have relations with his daughter. You're my wife now,'" the survivor stated.

Y.K. rejected all charges of sexual assault during the hearing, while the survivor's attorney told reporters that they would continue to fight until the assailant received "the punishment he deserves."