Court acquits woman for killing rapist for ‘defense’

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Kaçmaz (C) said Kalkan had been sexually abusing her for two years. She also said she and her husband left their hometown to escape him but he continued. DHA photo

A Turkish court has acquitted a woman for killing her rapist on the grounds of lawful defense.

The acquittal of Nafiye Kaçmaz, 43, for the homicide of her rapist on grounds of lawful defense marks a turn in the Turkish judicial system in favor of women’s rights, daily Radikal reported yesterday. The verdict by the Fourth Court for Serious Crimes in the southeastern province of Gaziantep divided public opinion. Some suggested the verdict set a precedent that any woman who kills her rapist would not be convicted. However, defenders of women’s rights are satisfied with the decision, saying the judicial system had to acknowledge the fact that a woman left unprotected by law rightfully protected herself.

Background of the case

Kaçmaz’s case started in 2011 when she was arrested for the murder of Ali Kalkan. In her defense Kaçmaz said Kalkan had been sexually abusing her for two years through force and threats. She also said she and her husband had left their hometown, Diyarbakır, to escape him but he continued wherever they went. Kaçmaz also said she had applied to the prosecutor’s office many times and after all his assaults in different provinces but the court did not protect her. Kaçmaz said she had not intended to kill Kalkan, but tried to hurt him when he manually assaulted her. She stabbed Kalkan in his back with a bread knife she had taken along when she met him because he had threatened to broadcast footage he had taken while raping her.

The court for serious crimes ruled Oct. 9 that Kaçmaz committed the murder to end repeated assaults on her integrity.Daily Radikal’s report quotes lawyers who interpret the case not to mean that every woman who kills her rapist will be acquitted, because every case is considered individually. “The chief reason for acquittal was the legal petitions submitted to the court in various provinces and on several occasions. These petitions were filed by the prosecutor of the homicide case. With this decision, the judicial system acknowledges its failure to protect a victimized woman and allows her the right to protect herself.