One Turkish woman died every five days due to ‘falling’ from a height in July

In July, six women "suspiciously" died after they fell from a height in Turkey. The women's families and activists demanded an investigation of incidents disguised as suicide and accidents.

Saturday August 05 2023 02:39 pm

A banner from a women's rights march, "There is no suspicious death of woman, there is hidden male violence."

Duvar English

In July, six women died due to falling from a height, and one woman was seriously injured.

Families of some of the women who died have filed criminal complaints and asserted that they did not die as a result of an “accident,” but a man pushed them, according to reporting of daily BirGün.

Kübra Yurt is one of those who survived despite being pushed from a height in July. She was seriously injured when she fell from her house in Diyarbakır province.

Although a video taken at the crime scene depicting Yurt saying her ex-husband pushed her from the balcony was included in the investigation file, he was released by the police after his statement was taken.

The authorities do not sufficiently examine the evidences in these cases which is very difficult for families, lawyers, and activists to prove their stances. The fact that the cases often result in little or no penalty also encourages the perpetrators.

In July, 39-year-old Yeşim Demir "fell" off a cliff and died in Çanakkale province. The woman's family filed a criminal complaint and stated that it was a murder. Women also died in Mardin, Karaman, Kayseri, and Zonguldak provinces due to falling from heights. In Elâzığ, an investigation was launched after 19-year-old Neslihan Köse "fell to her death while cleaning a tablecloth" from the balcony of her house.

Şule Çet, who was murdered in capital Ankara in 2018, is the best-known of the women who allegedly "fell" to their deaths. Although it was claimed that Çet had committed suicide, it was revealed that she had in fact been raped and pushed by the perpetrators Çağatay Aksu and Berk Akand.

During the court process, women's organizations stated that the investigation was not carried out effectively and evidence was tried to be spoiled. The Turkish media also has tried to frame perpetrators as "innocent."

After this murder, suspicious deaths of women caused by falling from heights became more and more visible.

Men killed 25 women in July and nine women were found dead in suspicious circumstances, according to the We Will Stop Femicide Platform.