Turkish Education Ministry Event Sparks Outrage Over Claims Girls Were Told “Women Should Not Work”

Summary:

A series of Education Ministry–organised seminars for high-school girls has triggered political controversy, after teachers’ unions accused officials of promoting anti-Atatürk rhetoric and telling students that women should not work outside the home. The Ministry has not yet issued a public explanation, while opposition groups demand clarity and accountability.

Union Claims Ministry Seminar Promoted Anti-Republic Views

A controversy has erupted in Türkiye after the Education and Science Workers’ Union (Eğitim-İş) alleged that a Ministry of National Education (MEB) seminar instructed female students that “a woman’s place is the home” and that women “should not work.”

The events, held under the banner of “Maziden Atiye” as part of the Ministry’s “Century of Türkiye Education Model” outreach programme, reportedly gathered thousands of 10th and 11th grade girls from across the country. Sessions were conducted in Bitlis and Diyarbakır, according to Eğitim-İş legal rights secretary Yeliz Toy.

Deputy Education Minister Nazif Yılmaz attended at least one of the meetings.

Phones Confiscated; Students Report Anti-Atatürk Messaging

Toy shared images from the gatherings and claimed that students’ phones were collected at the entrance, with the programme held behind closed doors.

According to testimonies cited by the union, speakers delivered messages portraying Atatürk and the Republic in a negative light, while emphasising that women’s primary role is to “serve their families” and remain at home rather than pursue a career.

Toy criticised the initiative as part of what she described as “increasingly ideological programmes” aligned with the government’s “Year of the Family” agenda, warning that the sessions undermined women’s citizenship rights and Republican-era social gains.

Student Challenges Speakers: “Women Choose Their Own Path”

In one video circulated by Toy, a student openly challenged the remarks delivered at the seminar:

“A woman may choose to stay home with her child — or she may choose not to have children and pursue a career. She can also do both. These are women’s choices. Men have no place dictating this.
A woman can gain economic independence by working instead of asking her husband for money. She can achieve far more than what you describe.”

The clip rapidly spread on social media, drawing widespread support.

Opposition: “This Model Has No Place in Modern Education”

Toy accused Education Minister Yusuf Tekin and Deputy Minister Yılmaz of allowing a “reactionary and sect-aligned educational approach,” asking:

• “From which religious order did you learn this seminar model?”

• “Why was the content hidden from the public?”

• “Are you not ashamed of the responses given by 15- and 16-year-old girls?”

She vowed that secular and science-based education would be defended “at all costs,” adding that “Republican reforms and women’s equality will continue to guide Türkiye.”

The Ministry has not issued a detailed public statement addressing the claims as of publication.

Source:  Yeniçağ Gazette