Indian Embassy in Türkiye holds panel on International Women’s Day

On International Women’s Day, the Indian Embassy in Türkiye held a panel discussion that focused on challenges such as natural disasters and the role women play in dealing with them.

"There are countless women around the world, especially in the developing world, who may not be aware of the existence of such a Day, but they are day in and day out playing their role tirelessly in the face of a wide variety of adversities and challenges in the interest of their families and societies,” Indian Ambassador to Ankara Virander Paul said at the panel discussed held under the theme “Facing Adversity.”

Paul also highlighted that women were part of rescue and relief teams that India had sent after the deadly earthquakes in southern Türkiye last month.

"Indian teams had women as active and enthusiastic members and we are proud of the role they played in providing relief to the suffering people. Some of you would remember the images in the social media of an Indian army doctor who was widely appreciated not only for her professional competence but also for the empathy she and others showed as they approached those who needed urgent and timely medical attention. Women brought a special healing touch," he said.?

Prof. Feride Acar, the founding chair of the Middle East Technical University's gender and women's studies program, spoke about the challenges women experience in natural disasters and conflict zones.

"March 8 is also a day to remember how the world is still very far away from real equality, the goals of gender equality still have a long road to go. Disasters actually indicate to us some of that missing part to the voyage of equality more dramatically than normal times," she said.

In her speech, UN World Food Program Country Director Parvathy Ramaswami said that she visited camps in Türkiye’s quake-hit Kahramanmaras and Hatay provinces.

“I also talked to women workers from municipalities who volunteered in kitchens to cook. Everybody told me that they stayed in the location where they were providing assistance. So, this collective giving sense exists in women more than men because women talk about others and they care for others. I got more requests from women asking ‘can you look after somebody? can you support somebody else’ and when I talk to men it was all about ‘we need this, and can you provide this,’ she said.

More than 46,100 people were killed in Türkiye by earthquakes that struck on Feb. 6, according to officials.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes, centered in Kahramanmaras, rocked 11 provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, Elazig, and Sanliurfa.