gender climate in turkey and russia a thesis submitted to the graduate sch

289 Pages·2014·1.76 MB·English

FROM EARLY MODERNIZATION TO AUTHORITARIAN POLITICS:
GENDER CLIMATE IN TURKEY AND RUSSIA

A THESIS SUBMITTED TO
THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
OF
MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY

BY

GÖKTEN DOĞANGÜN

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR
THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
IN
THE DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE AND
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

JUNE 2014
Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences

Prof.Dr. Meliha Altunışık
Director

I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy.

Prof.Dr. Raşit Kaya
Head of Department

This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully
adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.

Prof.Dr. Ayşe Ayata
Supervisor

Examining Committee Members

Prof.Dr. Feride Acar (METU, ADM)
Prof.Dr. Ayşe Ayata (METU, ADM)
Assoc.Prof.Dr. Pınar Akçalı (METU, ADM)
Assoc.Prof.Dr. Fethi Açıkel (Ankara University)
Assist.Prof. Dr. İdil Aybars (METU, SOC)
I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and
presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare
that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced
all material and results that are not original to this work.

Name, Last name: Gökten DOĞANGÜN

Signature :
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ABSTRACT
FROM EARLY MODERNIZATION TO AUTHORITARIAN POLITICS:
GENDER CLIMATE IN TURKEY AND RUSSIA

Doğangün, Gökten
Ph.D., Department of Political Science and Public Administration
Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Ayşe Ayata
June 2014, 277 pages

This dissertation attempts to examine how and why the gender politics has transformed
towards neo-conservatism in Turkey and towards neo-traditionalism Russia in the recent
decades. Despite a long history of women’s rights in both Turkey and Russia, neo-
conservative and neo-traditional approaches have been emerging in both countries,
particularly after the access of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and President
Vladimir Putin to power. In examining this transformation, the main focus is put on the
gender climate, which mainly shapes around the process of hegemony constitution. It is
concluded that while modernization attempts by the Republican and Bolshevik revolutions
gave the way to the adoption of the principle of women’s equality, authoritarian tendencies,
which have been appearing under the rule of Prime Minister Erdoğan and President Putin in
the recent decade, have given rise to re-focus on biological determinism under the conditions
of neo-liberalism, the rise of political Islam and the rise of the Orthodox Church.

Keywords: gender, gender climate, authoritarianism, Turkey, Russia.
iv
ÖZ
ERKEN MODERNLEŞMEDEN OTORİTER SİYASETE:
TÜRKİYE VE RUSYA’DA TOPLUMSAL CİNSİYET İKLİMİ

Doğangün, Gökten
Doktora, Siyaset Bilimi ve Kamu Yönetimi Bölümü
Tez Danışmanı: Prof. Dr.Ayşe Ayata

Haziran 2014, 277 sayfa
Bu tez, toplumsal cinsiyet rejiminin Türkiye’de yeni muhafazakarlığa, Rusya’da ise yeni
gelenekseciliğe doğru gerçekleşen dönüşümünü incelemektedir. Türkiye ve Rusya’da kadın
hakları tarihinin uzun bir geçmişi vardır. Buna rağmen, özellikle Başbakan Recep Tayyip
Erdoğan ve Başkan Vladimir Putin’in iktidara gelmesinden sonra, bu iki ülkenin toplumsal
cinsiyet rejimi yeni muhafazakar ve yeni gelenekselci yaklaşımlar etrafında şekillenmeye
başlamıştır. Bu dönüşüm açıklanırken, esas olarak hegemonya kurma süreci etrafında
şekillenen, toplumsal cinsiyet iklimi üzerinde durulmuştur. Cumhuriyet ve Bolşevik
devrimleri tarafından izlenen modernleşme çabaları kadınların eşitliği ilkesinin
benimsenmesini sağlarken, Başbakan Erdoğan ve Başkan Putin’in iktidarları döneminde
ortaya çıkan otoriter eğilimler biyolojik farklılığın ön plana çıkmasına sebep olmuştur.
Bunda neo-liberal koşulların ve siyasi İslam ile Ortodoks Kilisesinin yükselişinin de etkisi
bulunmaktadır.

Keywords: toplumsal cinsiyet, toplumsal cinsiyet iklimi, otoriteryanizm, Türkiye,
Rusya.

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To life and change…

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor Prof. Dr. Ayşe Ayata
for her guidance, advice, criticism, encouragements and insight throughout the
research. I have to acknowledge my debt to my supervisor for the academic
inspiration and tutorial that she provided during my doctoral education. She has
continuously appreciated my efforts. Her intellectual and morale support are so very
important for me.
I would like to show my gratefulness to Prof. Dr. Feride Acar, who kindly agreed to
participate in my jury and shared her valuable comments on my thesis, which have
been very enlightening for me. I would also like to express my sincere thanks to
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pınar Akçalı for her appreciation and lovely comments, which have
been very helpful for me. I would also like to express my thanks to Assoc. Prof. Dr.
Fethi Açıkel and Assist. Prof. Dr. İdil Aybars for their important and contributive
suggestions and comments.
I am also deeply indebted to my family. I would like to express my deepest gratitude
to my mother, my father and my brother, who have always believed in and
unconditionally supported my efforts during my whole academic life. Without their
patience and most valuably never-ending care and encouragement, blended with their
love, this study could hardly be realized.
This dissertation could not be written without the unconditional support and help of
my KORAcans, Yelda, Zelal and Sezin. Their academic contribution and emotional
support made this long journey easier and tolerable. They did not deny their patience
and encouragement at each step. I owe my deepest love to them. Dear Olga and
Güzel lended me a hand in translation and in doing research in Russian. With their
help, my research was enriched. Finally, I owe my thanks to all interviewees, who
accepted to give me an interview and contributed my research.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PLAGIARISM ....................................................................................................... iii
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................... iv
ÖZ .......................................................................................................................... v
DEDICATION ...................................................................................................... vi
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ..................................................................................... vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ..................................................................................... viii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................ xi
CHAPTER
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 1
1.1. Objectives.. ............................................................................................... 1
1.2. Theoretical Framework ............................................................................. 4
1.3. Gender Order and Gender Climate ........................................................... 5
1.4. Gender, State and Hegemony Constitution ............................................... 6
1.5. Method................. ................................................................................... 12
1.6. Organization ............................................................................................ 14
GENDER CLIMATE IN REPUBLICAN AND BOLSHEVIK TIMES .............. 17
2.1. New Soviet Women and Family ............................................................. 18
2.2. The Zhenotdel: Women’s Department of All-Russian Communist Party22
2.3. New Republican Women ........................................................................ 24
2.4. Turkish Women’s Union ......................................................................... 28
2.5. Gender Climate in Republican and Bolshevik Times ............................. 30
STATE OF THE ART IN THE LATE AND POST-SOVIET RUSSIA .............. 34
3.1. Late Brezhnev Era ................................................................................... 34
3.2. Legacy of Perestroika and Glasnost ....................................................... 37
3.3. Transition to Market Economy ............................................................... 41
3.4. Post-Soviet Notions of Femininity and Masculinity ............................... 44
3.5. Female Labor Force Participation ........................................................... 46
3.6. Family, Motherhood, Reproduction ........................................................ 52
3.6.1. Childcare and Family Benefits ......................................................... 53
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3.6.2. Reproductive Rights and Health ....................................................... 56
3.6.3. Maternity Capital .............................................................................. 57
3.6.4. Domestic Violence and Homosexuality ............................................ 59
3.7. Political Participation ............................................................................... 60
3.7.1. Women in Institutional Politics ......................................................... 60
3.7.2. Women’s Civic Activism and Feminism .......................................... 65
3.7.3. International Compliance and National Machinery .......................... 70
3.8. Conclusion ............................................................................................... 72
PARAMETERS OF NEW GENDER CLIMATE IN POST-SOVIET RUSSIA .. 73
4.1. The Break in Official Commitment to ‘Women’s Equality’ ................... 73
4.2. Feminization of Reproduction ................................................................. 87
4.2.1. Motherhood ....................................................................................... 88
4.2.2. Maternity Capital .............................................................................. 96
4.2.3. Abortion .......................................................................................... 101
4.3. Feminization of Labor Force ................................................................. 107
4.3.1. Feminization of Work-Family Balance ........................................... 108
4.3.2. Maternal Leave................................................................................ 111
4.3.3. Gender Segregation/Gender Appropriate Work.............................. 119
4.4. Conclusion ............................................................................................126
STATE OF THE ART IN TURKEY IN THE POST-1980 PERIOD ................. 128
5.1. The Emergence of Feminist Movement................................................. 128
5.2. Legal Changes in the early 1990s .......................................................... 129
5.3. The Rise of Political Islam and the European Union............................. 132
5.4. The New Notions of Femininity and Masculinity ................................. 134
5.5. Female Labor Force Participation.......................................................... 136
5.6. Family, Motherhood, Childcare, Reproduction ..................................... 143
5.6.1. Childcare and Maternal Leave ........................................................ 143
5.6.2. Intimacy, Sexuality and Reproduction ............................................ 146
5.7. Women’s Political Participation ............................................................ 152
5.7.1. Institutional Politics ........................................................................ 152
5.7.2. Women’s Movement and Feminism ............................................... 156
5.7.3. National Mechanism and International Compliance ....................... 158
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5.8. Conclusion ............................................................................................ 163
PARAMETERS OF NEW GENDER CLIMATE IN TURKEY ........................ 165
6.1. Challenge with the Official Discourse .................................................. 165
6.2. Feminization of Family ......................................................................... 179
6.2.1. Motherhood .................................................................................... 179
6.2.2. Domestic Violence ......................................................................... 185
6.2.3. Pro-natalist Policies ........................................................................ 191
6.3. Lack of Feminization in Labor Force ................................................... 193
6.3.1. Pro-employment Initiatives ............................................................ 196
6.3.2. Public Care ..................................................................................... 204
6.3.3. Maternal Leave ............................................................................... 209
6.4. Conclusion ............................................................................................ 213
COMPARISON AND CONCLUDING REMARKS ......................................... 214
7.1. Gender Climate in Republican and Bolshevik Times ........................... 214
7.2. The Rise of Authoritarian Tendencies in Turkey and Russia ............... 222
7.3. Generation of Neo-traditional and Neo-Conservative Gender Climate
Under Authoritarian Rule ............................................................................ 227
LIST OF REFERENCES ................................................................................... 239
APPENDICES ..................................................................................................... 264
A. INTERVIEW LIST IN MOSCOW AND ST.PETERSBURG ............... 264
B. INTERVIEW LIST IN ANKARA AND ISTANBUL ............................ 265
C. INTERVIEW QUESTIONNAIRE .......................................................... 266
D. TEZ FOTOKOPİ İZİN FORMU ............................................................. 267
E. CURRICULUM VITAE .......................................................................... 268
F. TURKISH SUMMARY .......................................................................... 271

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