MERSIN - Women working in the fields on 25 November drew attention to the violence perpetrated against women as a result of economic and social pressure, demanding improved working conditions and that violence not go unpunished. 

 

Woman agricultural workers mark 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, working in the fields under precarious conditions and labour exploitation. Women, who make up 44 per cent of the country's agricultural workers, perform invisible labour through "double shifts" both at work and at home. 

 

Agricultural workers in Adana and Mersin, who go to the fields before dawn, stated that low wages, uninsured work, domestic burdens and social violence combine to make their conditions even more difficult. The stories of woman agricultural workers reveal how economic inequality and systematic violence against women are intertwined.

 

ENDLESS WORK FROM THE FIELD TO THE HOME 

 

Hacer Kızılyıldız (56), who has been working in the fields for 20 years, stated that they start their day at 4 a.m. and return home at 4 p.m. Hacer Kızılyıldız said: "We work regardless of rain, mud or cold. Our daily wage is 1 thousand 200 Turkish Liras. What is that worth? We don't get paid for our labour, but we have to come. If we don't come, we go hungry. The children go to school. When we get home, we have to cook and clean. The men rest after the fields. As women, we want a good life.”

 

DAILY WAGE IS NOT ENOUGH, WOMEN ARE SILENCED

 

Agricultural worker Zeynep Akyürek pointed out that working hours consume a lifetime, saying, "Work at home, work in the fields. The daily wage is not enough. When the employer raises prices, they say it's 'expensive'. There is no water, no food. Neither the heat nor the cold here is bearable. We want our daily wages, which are the reward for our labour, to be increased. Women suffer the most. This violence against women must stop. Unless we women rise up, this will not be prevented. We are always silenced; if we don't speak up, we are doomed to be oppressed." 

 

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL PRESSURE 

 

Mahide Çatuk, who was forced to migrate from the Cizîr (Cizre) district of Şirnex (Şırnak) to the Tarsus district of Mersin in 1992 due to state pressure, said they were under both economic and social pressure, adding: "Sometimes we go to bed at midnight and get up at 3 a.m. We have no time for ourselves. Of the 1 thousand 200 Turkish Liras daily wage, 100 Turkish Liras goes to the agent, leaving us with 1 thousand Turkish Liras including breakfast. When the employer raises wages, our workload increases. If we were united, we would get the wage we want in 10 days. As if that weren't enough, women are oppressed. The stick of oppression is constantly on women. Men don't want women's rights. Women go and complain, and they are told to 'mind their own business'. When this happens, the violence escalates. It is clear that the policy of impunity fuels violence. A home without a woman is not a home, but the value of women is not recognised." 

 

Agricultural worker Güneş Aslan stated that they work out of necessity, saying, "Garden work is hard, housework is harder. I have to leave my child at home. We wouldn't come if we didn't have to."

 

LEAVING HER 9-MONTH-OLD BABY AT HOME WHILE SHE WORKS IN THE FIELDS

 

Şükran Kansu, who has to leave her nine-month-old baby at home while she works in the fields, explained how poverty affects women: "We leave Mersin at 4 a.m. By the time we get to the garden, it's 6 a.m. It takes until 2 or 3 o'clock to finish our work. When we get home, we don't stop; it's dinner, housework, cleaning, the children, and we can't find time for ourselves. My baby is 9 months old, but I'm here. My 8-year-old daughter looks after my baby. We have no other means of support. If it weren't for the garden, we'd be doing farm work." Drawing attention to systematic violence against women and the deepening economic crisis, Şükran Kansu said they were under pressure in every area. Şükran Kansu stated, "Market prices are what they are. What can we buy with a 100 Turkish Liras increase? I can't afford formula for 1 thousand Turkish Liras, so I feed my child with cheap biscuits. Women wake up to news of violence every day.”

 

The only request of the other women working in the fields was for improved working conditions and for violence not to go unpunished.

 

MA / Mehmet Gules