More than third of Turkish women justify beatings by husband: poll

ANKARA, Oct 21 (AFP) - More than a third of Turkish women believe they deserve being beaten if they argue with their husbands, deny them sex or burn the meal, according to a survey carried by Anatolia news agency on Thursday.

The survey found that 39 percent of women in Turkey believe their husbands are right to beat them for at least one of the following reasons: burning the meal, disputing the opinion of their husbands, spending money unnecessarily, neglecting the children or refusing to have sex.

In rural areas, 57 percent of women said their spouses had a right to batter them in at least one of the above circumstances.

Arguing with the husband topped the list of justified reasons for domestic violence, followed by too much spending and the negligence of children.

The poll was conducted among 8,075 married women by Ankara's Hacettepe University and was funded by the European Union and the Turkish government.

The European Union, which Turkey is seeking to join, has put pressure on the Ankara government to better protect the rights of women.

Source: www.turkishpress.com/turkish...news.asp