Turkey launches mobile app to respond faster to cases of violence against women

ANKARA

Turkey has launched a mobile application called “Women Support” (KADES) for victims of violence with the joint cooperation of the Family and Social Policies Ministry and Interior Ministry.

“This application seeks to ensure women reach our police forces and receive help when under any threat, with just one touch,” Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu said on May 16 during a meeting to promote the application.

“In any dangerous situation, women can connect to the system at the touch of a button, which will automatically send details of their location to the police,” Soylu said.

“The nearest law enforcement units are then dispatched [to the place of the incident],” he said.

The pilot version of the mobile app is currently being used and 24,584 people having downloaded it so far since its launch in March, the minister said during the meeting.

“Some 31 women have tipped off the police in emergency situations and the necessary interventions have been undertaken. The time it takes for police to intervene in an incident following a tip off is five minutes on average,” said Soylu.

The minister also gave figures relating to women who have complained to the authorities for being subject to violence.

“In the first four months of 2018, 51,361 women have applied [to the authorities], and protective measures were taken for 27,400 victims, whereas preventive measures were taken against 37,147 men for inflicting violence,” he said.

“As a result of protective and preventive measures, when the first four months of 2017 and 2018 are compared, there is a 39 percent decrease in deaths of women as a result of violence in the zones of police responsibility,” Soylu further noted.

“A society where women do not feel happy and safe, could not be expected to be thriving and powerful,” said Family and Social Policies Minister Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya, who also took the floor during the meeting in Ankara.

Sayan Kaya noted that with the newly launched app KADES, the police will be able to reach victims of abuse “in the fastest way,” said Kaya.

“Our ultimate target is for the violence in society to completely be wiped out,” she said.

“This application that brings a smart solution in the fight against violence inflicted upon women, determines the address of the person who sent the notification … Hopefully, in upcoming periods we will see this app has protected so many of our women,” said the minister.

Kaya also touched on the steps the ministry has taken to raise awareness regarding domestic violence.

“This year, we have provided educative training to 400 police officers. In January, we have also relaunched seminars on violence against women for civil servants across 81 provinces. Within the context of these seminars, we have reached 15,000 civil servants,” she said.

“Our President [Recep Tayyip Erdoğan] says ‘abuse and violence on women is the biggest crime inflicted upon humanity.’ We will continue our efforts until this shame is completely wiped out of our country,” said the minister.