Resilience amidst regression
Canan Balkır · 2025
This chapter explores the complex connection between gender policy and democratic backsliding in Türkiye, as well as the diminishing role of the European Union (EU) in fostering democracy within this official candidate country. Additionally, it emphasizes the resistance efforts of women&s;s organizations against this democratic decline. Initially, the EU accession process in the early 2000s compelled Turkey to enact reforms promoting gender equality. However, the Justice and Development Party (JDP) shifted toward authoritarianism and religiously conservative gender policy following its electoral victories between 2011 and 2018, under the backdrop of continued economic growth during this period. Concurrently, the EU shifted its focus from upholding democratic principles to prioritizing strategic cooperation, especially after the 2015 Syrian crisis. This change redirected attention toward managing refugee flows rather than advocating for democratic standards, weakening the EU&s;s influence on Türkiye&s;s domestic politics and diminishing its credibility in promoting democratic values. Despite these challenges, women&s;s organizations built intersectional alliances with feminists from various ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, uniting across platforms to continue their advocacy for gender equality. Notably, in 2021, they appealed to the Council of Europe to challenge Türkiye&s;s withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence, highlighting their unwavering commitment to promoting gender rights despite the challenging political and ideological shifts.