Turkish President Says Women Shouldn’t Be Considered Equals

ISTANBUL — President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday used an international conference on justice and rights for women to declare that women should not be regarded as equal to men and that pregnancy presented an obstacle to equal opportunity in the workplace.

Mr. Erdogan also condemned feminists for rejecting motherhood.

“You cannot put women and men on an equal footing,” Mr. Erdogan said in an address to the conference here, according to the semiofficial Anadolu news agency. “It is against her nature — because her nature is different, her bodily constitution is different.”

“You cannot make women work in every job that a man works at, as in Communist regimes,” he said. “Give her a shovel and make her work — this cannot be. It would primarily be against her delicate nature.”

nytimes

Sexism? or the starting approach of turkey to his new neighbor ISIS?

People should be equal but jobs are not equal, for example as a diabetic i cannot operate heavy machinery or do barrel rolls in a plane , woman clearly are physiologically different does this make them not suitable for some kind of jobs?

Of course the "activist" are against the man since he made the declarations.

I just gonna say this if i was hiring for a job like loading baggage to a plane that each weight 50 pounds and 2 men came for the job, one a fit 6 ft 180 pounds man and the other 5ft 100 pound one would not give two toughs to hire the one i know can do the job.

But if a woman apply maybe the equal thing to do is lower the maximum weight of the load so she can handle it... that is equal no... All I'm saying men are compared all the time to other men and deemed not worthy of a job due to his capabilities but if this is done to women it seems to be sexist and discriminatory.

bash away

That is the great divide that other nations had to jump over. In the States the vast majority of women couldn't vote until 1920. So the fact that some nations still have this attitude towards women isn't surprising - although in time that will change (both legally and in the average personal attitude).

a reply to: Aleister

So the fact that some nations still have this attitude towards women isn't surprising

Still...?

That will not change in the near or distant future, concerning the areas in question...and around it.

a reply to: Indigent

I had to laugh when I read this because a friend of ours is an incredibly strong woman. She lifts heavy weights and drives a truck so swinging a spanner is no problem for her and in fairness my wife doesn't have her brute strength. So its a bit hard to specify the one size for all covers everyone, because it doesn't.

I do think that he should not come in for criticism because what he's saying is right, however where a woman does the same work as a man equal pay is fair.

I liked his gallantry and I wonder that so would a number of women. I hope that Turkey won't go into the "women are featherless bypeds with limited intelligence" as I have know many a man to rush out dodging an accurately thrown pan after insinuating that to 'the lady of the house'.

There is some truth there, but it is a broad generalization.
Not all women are 5' and 100 lbs. There are also men that size.
I have a girlfriend that is over 6' and about 180. She could chunk luggage with any man.
Hell, she can probably chunk a man holding the luggage.
I don't see it as accurate to say that all women are delicate little baby makers.
Some are, some aren't.

a reply to: Indigent

I kinda agree.

Men and women are and will always be different. Ignoring that and using principle as a reason for sexual equality is counter-intuitive and stereotypical imo.

We should live in a world of acceptance when it comes to our differences, and when that is more common in our mindsets we will learn to be the 7 billion individuals we truly are and find less conflict when it comes to our own capabilities and the capabilities of others regardless of our "bits".

a reply to: skunkape23

From what i get in the news of what the man said, he was a condescending dbag.

I said 5ft as it seems the average height of women is 5 3, i tried to give an example of a job men could be discriminated due to their limitations if they are close to the average of a woman just to say that discrimination happens all the time to men and its ok, but if its against woman, is it ok?

originally posted by: MarioOnTheFly
a reply to: Aleister

So the fact that some nations still have this attitude towards women isn't surprising

Still...?

That will not change in the near or distant future, concerning the areas in question...and around it.

It will change, and probably sooner than we all think. The gains in women's rights in western societies has been very quick. When the U.S. constitution was written woman were almost like cattle, and it specifically says that the president was a "he" (later amendments changed that language) because the founders never imagined the possibility of a "she" president. It will be a rocky road for some Mideast and other nations to give women full equality, but it won't take very much to get that ball rolling quickly (i.e. it's already been taken a long way by the brave young girl who stood up for educational rights).

a reply to: Aleister

It will be a rocky road for some Mideast and other nations to give women full equality, but it won't take very much to get that ball rolling quickly (i.e. it's already been taken a long way by the brave young girl who stood up for educational rights).

Well..you're entitled to your opinion. I don't see it happening. Areas in question are mostly Islamic. Islamic culture and it's law abiding religious doctrine dictates built-in gender inequality..."legalized" gender inequality.

a reply to: Indigent

I think women are equal to men...thats why they should have to sign up for selective service!

a reply to: Indigent

Not to be a jerk, well a little I guess.....Turkey is a joke of country. They have always been historically a backwards place to live. They revel in hate and intolerance. I have no idea how our leaders even approximate themselves to this country. Strategic value aside, its not even worth it. They will and have betrayed every ally they ever had.
Temporal or otherwise ....

You could write a book about it....several.

a reply to: Indigent

Know what would be really fun? If we in the West stated we do not view Turkish men as equals, only Turkish women. I bet that would screw with their inane minds for a few!

a reply to: Indigent

It's not sexual discrimination for a person not to get a job because they are physically incapable of doing it.
But I'm sorry women are not delicate, delicate dies not survive 12 hours of brutally painful labour.
He's an ignorant man.

a reply to: Auricom

well...



Yeah...

a reply to: Indigent

Good job Erdogan!

No need to argue anymore that Turkey IS NOT Europe.

He did it all by himself. Sometimes all one has to do is wait...

@Auricom
Excellent idea!

Muslims don't see women as equals?
How is that anything new?

originally posted by: MarioOnTheFly
a reply to: Aleister

It will be a rocky road for some Mideast and other nations to give women full equality, but it won't take very much to get that ball rolling quickly (i.e. it's already been taken a long way by the brave young girl who stood up for educational rights).

Well..you're entitled to your opinion. I don't see it happening. Areas in question are mostly Islamic. Islamic culture and it's law abiding religious doctrine dictates built-in gender inequality..."legalized" gender inequality.

While that is true, you seem to ignore the fact that within the Vedas (India) is something similar, and within Christianity and Judaism (USA....Israel), the superiority of Men is also indoctrinated via into followers via the scriptures (or atleast was).

To suggest that Chauvinism is exclusive to Islam is beyond ignorant. All of the Abrahamic religions are chauvinistic. So are many others as well.

a reply to: Indigent

so if two people came to you for the job and one was a 160 lb champion weightlifter while the other was a 125 lb accountant would you not hire the weightlifter because she happened to be a women??

I think honest judgements as to who has the best ability to do the job is acceptable but the wrong would come in if you dismissed hiring the weightlifter upon noticing she was a women regardless of how many hours she has spent lifting the amount of weight you require to be lifted in her training.

a reply to: dawnstar

that is a straw man you know, you miss a important part of what i say.

would not give two toughs to hire the one i know can do the job.

If a weakling comes it would be clear he cant do it no? as i said i was thinking in the average woman

I said 5ft as it seems the average height of women is 5 3, i tried to give an example of a job men could be discriminated due to their limitations if they are close to the average of a woman just to say that discrimination happens all the time to men and its ok, but if its against woman, is it ok?