Turkey: Man faces fine for telling wife 'I don't love you'

Court rules statement to be act of emotional violence, says emotionally wrecked wife must be compensated.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
Turkish bride and groom. (photo credit: REUTERS)
Turkish bride and groom.
(photo credit: REUTERS)
In a landmark ruling this week, the Turkish Supreme Court ruled that a husband give his wife monetary compensation for declaring "I don't love you,"  a statement deemed by the court to be an act of emotional violence,  the Turkish Daily Sabah reported.
The couple, in the midst of a divorce, sought compensation from one another for insulting the other.
The wife claimed her spouse often left their home and did not care for her well-being. The Daily quoted her saying that her husband would silence her with the words, "you don't have a right to speak, I don't love you."
Such statements, she said, left her emotionally wrecked.
The husband, on his part, said he was constantly cursed at.
Initially, a local court rejected the wife's claims and denied her compensation, saying that she was partially at fault for insulting her husband. Yet she appealed this ruling, according to the Sabah, turning to the Supreme Court of Appeals.
There, the court ruled in her favor, saying that she should be paid monetary compensation for the "emotional violence" she endured as a result of her husband's statement that he does not love her.
In its verdict, according to the Daily Sabah, the court reasoned that the husband's wrongdoings outweighed his wife's cursing.
The ruling comes at a time when the prevalence of domestic violence (whether emotional or physical) has gained traction in Turkey.
A survey released in December by Turkey's Hurriet Daily revealed that 75% of working, university educated women in the country were exposed to some form of violence.
Accordingly, 37.5% of males admitted to have committed an act of violence against their partner.
As a result of these alarming statistics, Turkey has set out to tackle the issue of violence against women, according to the Sabah.  Stricter sentencing in court is only one of the cautionary measures taken by Turkish authorities to curb the violence.