Electronic tags for abusive men extended to 15 provinces in Turkey

ISTANBUL

The number of Turkish provinces to introduce an electronic bracelet system for men convicted of domestic violence against their spouses has increased from six to 15.

The system was put into execution first in 2015 with a protocol signed between the Interior Ministry, Justice Ministry and Family and Family and Social Policies Ministry.

The capital Ankara and the western province of İzmir were the first two provinces that applied the electronic tagging system, before four more provinces adopted the system: Istanbul, the western province of Bursa, the southeastern province of Gaziantep and the southern province of Antalya.

And now the system has been extended to nine more other provinces with the relevant protocol having been revised in June of this year, said Anadolu Agency on Sept. 30. These provinces are: The southern provinces of Adana and Mersin, the eastern province of Malatya, the northern provinces of Samsun and Trabzon and the western provinces of Aydın, Eskişehir, Denizli and Sakarya.

As per the system, the perpetrators of domestic violence are monitored 24/7 by an electronic monitoring center established within the body of the general directorate of prisons and detention houses under the Justice Ministry.

The perpetrators are ordered to keep a certain physical distance from the victims, and if they break this rule, they are contacted by the monitoring center and given a warning. If the violation persists, the monitoring center shares the whereabouts of both the perpetrator and the victim with the police units.

The police then take action to keep the perpetrator away from the victim and at the same time notifies the situation to the prosecutor’s office. Then the authorities fulfill an official report detailing the violation, with the case being referred to the family court.

Besides the use of electronic bracelets, authorities employ other methods to protect women subjected to domestic violence, including women changing their names to avoid being located by their perpetrators, imposing restraining orders, and ensuring women take refuge in women shelters.

A staggering 440 women were killed in Turkey in 2018, according to a report by Kadın Cinayetlerini Durduracağız Platformu (We Will Stop Femicide Platform), a non-governmental organization that keeps a tally of femicides across the country.

The number of women killed in 2017 was 409, according to a previous report published by the same organization.