ERDOGAN SLAMS MALE PROTESTERS WEARING MINISKIRTS

Istanbul, 7 Jumadal Awwal 1436/26 February 2015 (MINA) – “Let them cry out for low-cut (tops) and miniskirts,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Wednesday (25/2) in criticism of male protesters who donned skirts to show their solidarity with women facing violence and domestic abuse.

During his speech he gave for the for the inauguration of dormitories owned by the NGO Service for Youth and Education Foundation of Turkey (TÜRGEV) in the capital Ankara, Erdogan vowed to “raise generations loyal to their beliefs and history,” The Hurriyet Daily quoted him as saying.

On Feb. 21, some Turkish men wore women’s skirts in a bid to campaign for women’s rights, a week after the attempted rape and murder of a woman shocked the country, Palestinian Information Center (PIC) quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

After the violent death last week of 20-year-old Ozgecan Aslan, a student in a southern Turkish town who was abducted and stabbed to death by a bus driver – allegedly after a rape attempt, protests, rallies, and campaigns in solidarity with Aslan have been frequent, with many taking place in Istanbul’s Taksim square.

While reiterating the murder of Aslan as total savagery, Erdogan went on further to criticize their method of protesting.

“They call themselves ‘men.’ What men? Men wear trousers, but they wear skirts. They hide themselves,” he said, drawing a parallel between skirts and masks. “Why do you wear a mask, if you are not a terrorist?” he asked. (T/P006/R03)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)