To İsmet Berkan, Executive Editor of Radikal Newspaper,

In your newspaper which listed "Women's Rights" as first among the Turkey's 5 crimes bearing date of 14.01.2007, the passage of "Science man who Suppressed the Disaster" was used in the headline of Television - Cinema (22th) page. We hope you are aware that our present state in terms of "Women's Rights" grows out of just these kinds of ignoring of women's existence and discrimination (ignoring women scientists here) due to your approach displayed and announced before concerning these issues and violence and discrimination towards women emanate from these estimations and mentality.

Besides, along with this sexist language mostly encountered at media:

• - In the world and in Turkey, descriptions like ‘science man', ‘businessman' and ‘statesman' are used continuously for the occupations and spheres including thousands of women, these women are being ignored completely and the reality is distorted to the disadvantage of women.
• - Repeating the patterns like ‘manly', ‘to become a man' etc. constantly, the cliché of "humanity is represented by men, good and correct definition for human is ultimately man" is reconstructed.
• - As in ‘sportslady' example, saying lady persistently in every place where the word ‘woman' can be used with ease; the prejudice of ‘being woman', ‘saying woman to woman' are pejorative is consolidated. Forasmuch as, every place where it is called ‘man' instead of ‘gentleman' to man, bewaring to say ‘woman' and saying ‘lady' to woman mean belittling women and womanhood once again in the name of ‘decency', ‘respect' and ‘patronage'.

As the language of media being one of the violence of women's human rights, we want to take your attention once again in order not to use such discriminatory terms and expressions. We anticipate from everyone to fulfill their responsibilities in order to be able to talk about women's rights and make women to take their human rights.

Women's Media Watch Group - MEDİZ