New poll shows Turkish women aren't happy / istanbul-bilbao

Scratch the surface a bit and it emerges that many Turkish women are less than satisfied with their lives. A poll conducted prior to March 8, International Women's Day, revealed a striking level of unhappiness felt by Turkish women.

The poll, carried out by Public Research Center , asked 1,044 rural and city women to share their views on topics such as marriage, family and the status of females in Turkish culture. The picture that emerged was not a pretty one. To the question "Are you happy?" just 42.4 percent of the 1,044 women polled answered "yes," while 31.6 percent answered "no," and 25 percent declined to answer.

A full 64 percent of women polled indicated that their most serious struggles were financial. Within the category of cost of living problems, women also named fatigue, violence, the lack of certain modern house appliances, lack of education, harassment at work or on the street, social discrimination in favor of men, lack of confidence, variety of health problems and economic dependence as other major problems.

Also evident from the results of the poll was that Turkish women had many personal problems. Outside of the cost of living category, women also complained about not being able to live as they wanted, not being able to take a good holiday, having their husbands consort with other women and not feeling beautiful or stylish.

Future not looking so bright

In terms of their thoughts about the future, the outlook of Turkish women also appears grim. When asked whether they were optimistic about the future, 40.6 percent replied "no," while 33.7 percent said "yes."

In another section of the poll, women were asked to share their self image. Asked to define themselves according to three choices given on the poll, 42 percent defined themselves as "problematic," while 26.2 percent defined themselves as "modern and happy." Women who rejected the first two choices were asked by pollsters to define themselves as they wished, leading to some striking answers.

Some of the responses given were: "I am a hard laborer," "I don't know what I am," "I am a slave," "I am a sick, tired and ruined shadow of a person," "I am a servant," "I am a pathetic being on the verge of going mad," "I am a human who is on her feet 15-16 hours a day," "I am an unfortunate woman" and "I am someone who was destroyed by the comfort in her father's home."

Turkish women unhealthy

In addition to the mental state of Turkish women, the poll also brought to light the general health status of Turkish women as being "extremely bad."

To the question of "Can you say 'I am completely healthy?'" 50 percent of the women polled answered "no," 35.6 percent answered "yes," and 14.4 percent didn't know.

Among health problems listed by those polled were aches and pains, gynecological problems, psychological problems, tooth and eye problems, and stomach and intestinal discomfort.

As to the general value accorded to the status of women in Turkish society, 60.2 percent believed women weren't valued in Turkey, 21.6 believed they were and 18.2 percent declined to answer.

In terms of the total number of hours spent working per day, Turkish career women appear to get the short end of the stick: 66.2 percent of housewives in the survey said they worked six to eight hours a day around the house, while working women had heavier labor loads -- 33.3 percent of working women polled said that between work and home duties, they worked 10-12 hours a day. Twenty-seven percent said they worked 13-15 hours a day.

Women were also polled whether or not the marriages they had dreamed of when young had come true, with 32.2 percent answering "no," 30.2 answering "yes," and another 37.6 percent declining to respond.

Some of the general opinions expressed by the poll shed an dark light on their thoughts about marriage and family in modern Turkey. Here is an overview of some of the comments received:

"The family structure has been shaken in Turkey." "There will be more and more divorces." "I am unable to meet the desires of my children." "If I knew what I know now, I would never have gotten married." "There is a fight every day in our home because of money." "I have nothing to wear, I am ashamed." "Why do they say mothers carry heaven on their backs?" "We've been destroyed, what about our daughters?" "Don't you see the disaster that has happened to us?" "High prices and poverty are crushing our spirits." "Our biggest source of entertainment is television, and football is a must," "Equality is only on paper," "I think feminists are right" and "Women everywhere are excluded."

09.03.2007
Today’s Zaman İstanbul