The Gala Dinner of the Third International Women and Justice Summit was held with the participation of the First Lady Emine Erdoğan

November 23, 2018, Istanbul

First Lady Emine Erdoğan attended the gala of the Third International Women and Justice Summit hosted by KADEM. Having specified that a robust family unity represents love, respect and mutual division of labor between women and men, Erdoğan added “Collective approaches such as women should stay at home and men should only handle activities which are outside of the home are contrary to the natural flow of life. Women and men are two elements which complement each other under all circumstances. A fair division of labor reduces the burden of life”.

The Gala of the Third International Women and Justice Summit, which was organized by the Women and Democracy Association, KADEM, in cooperation with the Ministry of Family and Social Policies of the Republic of Turkey, was held in the presence of the First Lady Emine Erdoğan. The Gala, which was held at Adile Sultan Palace, was attended by Zehra Zümrüt Selçuk, the Minister of Family, Labor and Social Services, Ziya Selçuk, the Minister of National Education, Ruhsar Pekcan, the Minister of Trade, Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar, the General Vice President of KADEM, ministers of foreign countries and foreign speakers and other guests including parliamentarians and press members.

Having given a speech, First Lady Emine Erdoğan stated that, the Women and Justice Summit of KADEM which has become a trademark now, represents a significant progress in relation to a deep-rooted problem like women’s rights.

The compass of the right path is justice

Having specified that justice is the compass of the right path, Erdoğan stated “Family is one of the leading issues and it is the institution which is the most harmed around the world. However, it is a shelter where we are protected, we love and we are loved and we feel the sense of confidence. Whenever we stay away from the family, we feel home sick. Although the ideas and perceptions in relation to family change in every period, the fact that family is the source of the community will not change under any circumstances. Family is the building blocks constituting a body. If these building blocks are sick, the body will also be sick”.

We have a strong family structure as the Turkish society

Having specified that strong families overcome their problems among themselves without resorting to governmental bodies, Erdoğan continued as follows: “What is more important is that the culture of social cooperation and solidarity doesn’t remain within the boundaries of family. Its effects also spread across the neighborhood. Fortunately, we have a strong family structure as the Turkish society despite all the threats of our era. The fact that many problems which can destroy any another society instantly, can be solved in our society, is due to the fact that Turkish family structure maintains its traditions. Despite this strong structure as its foundation, Turkish family is certainly not far from being affected by the threats in our era. While technology brings people together on the one hand, it drives them apart on the other hand. Especially the internet isolates people. If it has become a tradition to send wedding congratulations, condolences and festival celebrations on the internet, we must think twice. Communication within a family in itself is superior to all kinds of communications.

We must turn the children into a player of the family team. 

Having emphasized that we must provide a voice to our children in decision making processes, Erdoğan added “We must grow them as conscious and self-sacrificing individuals. It is not sufficient to say “Fatih was 21 years old when he conquered Istanbul’. We must contribute to the development of self-confidence and character to conquer Istanbul at the age of 21. Given the fact that family is a team, we must also reconsider the declining role of the father. Unfortunately, the role of looking after the family has been largely attributed to women. However, a robust family unity is the love, respect and mutual division of labor between women and men. Collective approaches such as women should stay at home and men should only handle the activities which take place outside of home are contrary to the natural flow of life. Women and men are the two elements which complement each other under all circumstances. A fair division of labor reduces the burden of life”.

Homesickness is the same in all countries of the world.

 Erdoğan who stated that all countries in the world need the light which justice sheds, added that: “Today, the things that our refugee siblings who have been away from their homeland have been exposed to are also harming their family unity. Given the fact that family is also a homeland, refugees are underdogs who have lost their motherland twice. The fact that train stations cannot be places where our Syrian siblings can reunite is a shame for humanity which blemishes the world. Homesickness is the same in all countries of the world. A mother’s fragrance is the same both in Syria and in Switzerland. If there is a pain that a family is enduring, it is felt in the same way all around the world.”

44 representation offices across Turkey

Having specified that Ministers of Women and Family of 10 different countries were hosted at the discussion session that we held at a Ministerial level following today’s inauguration, Saliha Okur Gümrükçüoğlu, the President of KADEM  stated “We have heard about the social policies and implementations in different countries and achieved very valuable gains. We are waiting impatiently to hear the contribution of our speakers, each of whom is an expert in their area. As KADEM, we addressed Strengthening of Family this year. While family is important for self-development of individuals, it is also essential for the powerful communities to maintain their existence. We believe wholeheartedly in the power of family to build both the individual and the whole society.  And we are taking this belief as an inspiration for our efforts.  With our 2100 students and 5200 members in our 44 provincial representation offices and 19 girls’ dormitories across Turkey, we are feeling within our hearts the expression which reads ‘being like a family’. Because, sense of belonging to a heart and home makes an individual feel valuable and in a sense, protects him from getting lost in life. The stronger these bonds are, the more the society gains strength”.

Having remarked that they consider within their areas of activity any issue which constitutes a sense of life in terms of women and family, Gümrükçüoğlu stated “If we want to do good jobs for women, family and society, we must do this by collaborating as women and men. Only then we may benefit the society. For this reason, the concept of justice is of great importance for us. Our Women and Justice Summit is an exemplary event where we can point out this concept”.

After displaying the introductory video of KADEM, the event ended by a music recital.