54 / 114
[
] 52
Gender justice for women
E. Sare Aydın Yılmaz, Founding President of the Women and Democracy Association and
Faculty Member at Istanbul Commerce University Department of International Relations and Political Science
W
omen represent half of the world’s population,
and their participation in the workforce and in
social, political and economic life remains a hot
topic. Changes to sociocultural life are directly or indi-
rectly associated with women’s activity and employment.
Therefore, women’s participation in the workforce grows in
parallel with efforts both to drive the importance attached
to the female workforce and to uphold international poli-
cies and practices, education and representation.
The transformative effect of the female workforce on the
global economic market has made women’s participation in
the economy a prioritized area. At this point, it is important to
distribute roles assigned to women and men as the two basic
elements constituting society, and more specifically the family,
and to establish the basic dynamics affecting such roles.
As required by democratic rights and social justice, access to
economic freedom, capitalist industrialization and economic
movements affecting the global economy have guided women
to leave their homes and engage in different fields of activity.
Private and public areas have emerged, and women still seek
status and power for themselves between these areas. Women
often face the dilemma of choosing between domestic and
professional roles, or shouldering both burdens. Therefore,
women’s dilemma must not be underestimated and prac-
tices to balance and support family life must be developed
in parallel with their participation in the workforce. During
the historical process, women have been regarded as cheap
labour and exploited by taking advantage of their changing
social, political and economic position, their secondary role
as substitute labour and their participation in the workforce
only to ‘contribute’ to the family budget rather than investing
in it. Thus, capitalist economies alter and diversify the quality
of the female workforce.
Modernism demands the highest benefit from individuals
and as it is intertwined with the capitalist system today, it has
become inevitable that women’s domestic work is disregarded,
resulting in women being subject to gender discrimination
Image: KADEM
W20 was formed in Ankara for the first time under the G20 as a result of efforts by Turkey
A B
etter
W
orld