Hanım

In an appeal for increased gender equality in local politics, Turkish Women Mayors Platform head Nurgül Uçar Aktuğ has expressed concerns over the strikingly low number of elected female local administrators.

Hasan Akar, an Islamic preacher who has been charged for posting videos online insulting Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey, has been arrested by an Istanbul court, 43 days after his arrest warrant was issued. 

Prosecutor Ertuğrul Sarıyar had issued the warrant on May 11, demanding up to 7.5 years of jail time, Doğan News Agency has reported.

An Istanbul chief public prosecutor filed an indictment on May 31 against a history magazine's chief editor for "insulting the memory of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk," the founder of modern Turkey, seeking from 1.5 years to 4.5 years of jail time, Doğan News Agency has reported.

Recent discussions over Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the War of Independence and the early days of the republic do not open new horizons, nor reveal new knowledge and perspectives. On the contrary, these distorted - sometimes fabricated - rumors are produced to provide ammunition to the current political and ideological fight.

The scene is the conference hall of the İzmir Bar Association. The occasion is the 82nd anniversary of Turkish women's suffrage. As Turks never get tired of telling you, in voices that drop an octave in admiration of a glorious/glorified past, Turkish women obtained the right to vote and be elected before some of their European sisters, thanks to the nation's founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.