Ahead of local elections on March 30, two non-governmental organizations and a magazine gave interviews to Daily Sabah yesterday. Evaluating the female candidates running in the local election, the interviewees called for the promotion of equality and social inclusion on March 8, International Women's Day.Over the past 10 years, Turkey has gained new momentum to include women in politics. According to statistics issued by the Association for the Support and Training of Women Candidates (KA.DER), the number of female election candidates increased more than fivefold compared to Turkish elections in the 1990s. While there were just eight women in the Turkish Parliament in 1991, 48 women won seats in the 2007 parliamentary elections.Amargi Magazine, a Turkish political magazine focused on women's rights, published a special edition for the upcoming local elections. Emphasizing that female candidates should not be forgotten during the election, Amargi Magazine criticized the dominance of men in the candidacy process and said all political parties in Turkey should promote female candidates.Regarding female candidacy rates in the election, the Association of Women and Democracy (KADEM) Chairperson Sare Aydın said women should be included more in the decision-making processes, particularly in local elections.She said, "Local elections are considered more "manly' than national elections, but good examples of women who are serving as local authorities should be promoted to decrease the male monopoly of politics."İlknur Üstün, an editorial board member of Amargi Magazine, said there was an unfair d om i n an c e of male candidates in the upcoming elections and political power struggles exclude women and discourage them from entering politics.She also criticized the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) as "they promised to implement a gender quota during the elections, but they broke that promise." Sema Silkin, a permanent member of KADEM, said she does not agree with the perception that female rates in politics are decreasing.She asserted that the positions of president or mayor are not the only ways to represent females in politics, and rates of female representation have increased by 50 percent in Turkish city councils regarding both representation and service.KA.DER Chairwoman Çiğdem Aydın harshly criticized male dominancy in politics, suggesting that "men are not eager to share politics with women because of their traditional assessment that 'women belong in the home,' but we always keep supporting women in politics." Aydın noted that as long as females did not have an equal place in the democratic process, Turkey's goal of being the 10th biggest economy in the world would not be achieved. Encouraging women in the country to cooperate, Aydın said, "We should not accept social impositions and the roles attributed us."When asked what steps should be taken to include more women in politics, Sare Aydın said women who are eager to act responsibly on gender issues in the country should perform studies on the women's branches of political parties. "Females are not included in the decision- making process in the way they are included in party organizing. Women's contributions to the grassroots of the parties are of utmost importance to the parties' success in elections," Sema Silkin said. She also touched on the abolishment of the hijab ban, suggesting that an increase of up to 50 percent of female candidates for local councils is the clearest indicator of the positive effects of the abolishment of the hijab ban in the country.Silkin noted that hijabi women in the country have been deprived of their right to be included in politics for a long time due to explicit or implicit bans. Abolishment of those bans is one of the biggest incentives for women to go into politics. "Increasing democratization steps in the country will gain a new momentum for the female candidacy rate. The training given by official bodies and nongovernmental organizations will also be an incentive regarding female candidacy,"Silkin said.Çiğdem Aydın noted that "the attitude towards females in the country should be revised completely." As long as there is no 50 percent gender quota in Turkey, including females in politics will be difficult, she added.Asserting that there is an injustice against women, İlknur Üstün said Turkey's approach to politics should change first to include women in politics, and new legal amendments should be enacted because women's duties are not limited just to the home; they also have to be active in social life. "The government should support women with new amendments and allow them to get into politics," she added.Responding to the question of whether female politicians take necessary steps in the parliament to include women in politics, Sare Aydın said the first duty of female politicians is to work on legal amendments to solve the problems of women in the country. Asserting that women are generally exposed to alienation, she urged related non-governmental organizations and institutions to take necessary action with the aim of overcoming prejudice against females.Sema Silkin stated, "Female politicians in the country are the result of a long and continuous struggle. As a woman, when we think that we can get what we deserve, we can give up struggling at the risk of losing all of our endeavors, but politics requires stability." She noted that female politicians should be more focused on women's social problems. She further said all women expect female politicians to listen to women's voices in the country.Believing that female politicians fulfill their roles correctly, Çiğdem Aydın said, "When women have equal opportunities as men, society benefits. Local administrations in particular can be a significant area to see women's strengths." Touching on the women-friendly cities of Europe, Aydın said Turkey turned its back on women and hasn't created those kinds of cities.She further criticized female politicians for not cooperating more on women's issues. She said women should leave party-oriented views and rather struggle to include women in politics. She urged female politicians to enact laws to prevent violence against women and also educate women in the country. "All politicians in the country should take responsibility, not only the female ones. They should take into account gender equality in the Turkish Parliament.This is not only the responsibility of female politicians but also male politicians," İlknur Üstün said.On the non-governmental organization's project to promote inclusion of women in politics, Çiğdem Aydın said KA.DER had put into action projects such as politics schools and empowering female citizens. She asserted that women who once participated in the politics schools are now holding positions such as mayor, deputy or council member.She said they prepared a KA.DER political program in every election period and include women's expectations in those programs. She further added that KA.DER started a campaign to empower women in the country ahead of the local elections and organized trainings in cities to promote the inclusion of women in politics.Sare Aydın said KADEM has a legal project and tries to solve women's problems through legal means. The organization has trained nearly 1,400 women on their legal rights. The association also launched social media campaigns for the social inclusion of women in Turkey.She further said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will be attending KADEM's "Woman and Democracy" meeting organized in cooperation with the Family and Social Policies Ministry today.