Investigation launched into Turkish business mogul over comments on women

ISTANBUL

A public prosecutor has launched an investigation into prominent business mogul Ali Ağaoğlu’s comments on one-night stands, saying that Ağaoğlu’s statements were insulting and discriminatory to women. 

“I don’t like one-night stands. If I did, there would be no women left in Istanbul,” Ağaoğlu said in an interview with Turkish broadcaster CNN Türk on April 30, eliciting a harsh response from women. 

The Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in Istanbul’s Bakırköy district charged Ağaoğlu with “openly insulting a fraction of the society on the grounds of social class, race, religion, sect or regional differences.” 

Lawyer Tuba Torun, a member of the Istanbul Bar Association, also filed a complaint against Ağaoğlu, saying he insulted and humiliated women while inciting people to hatred. 

“When the suspect’s words are examined, it is clear that he implies that almost every woman in Istanbul would be willing to have a one-night stand with him if he wanted to do so and he voices this with such high self-esteem,” read the criminal complaint petition. 

“The suspect Ali Ağaoğlu placed himself in a very precious spot, while placing women in a quite low one. He painted a portrait as if each woman in Istanbul can have a one-night stand with him and in this way he acted against the principle of equality,” the complaint added. 

Saying that Ağaoğlu had insulted millions of woman living in Istanbul, Torun added she had been personally harmed by the businessman’s comments. 

“As a woman, I would like to state that the comments of the suspect, which are qualified as insults, hurt my honor and dignity, negatively affected me and my reputability in society and hurt me morally,” Torun said.