State Policies on Women and Family in the Early 1990s

In this study, the formation of state institutions in Turkey concerning women and family is analyzed. In order to understand the evolution of these state institutions, the history of the feminist movement in Turkey is taken into consideration. The objectives and activities of the Directorate of Women's Status and Problems and the Family Research Institute are compared. The purposes of the two institutions; one trying to emancipate women, while the other imposing the traditional family structure are found contradictory. Besides, the worldviews of two governments, the MP and the coalition government of SDPP and TPP, and their reflections on the functioning of the institutions are examined. Even if the policies changed in 1990s, the attitude of the state did not go beyond viewing the status of women as the "popular barometer of civilization".