JINHA

ANKARA –86% of men who reported committing violence against women said they felt no regret, according to a report into the causes of violence against women commissioned by Turkey's Parliament.

The report, based on research with women and men, including victims and perpetrators of abuse, notes that for the many men who felt no regret about abuse, many of them said openly that they knew that violence was not a legitimate behavior, but said they could not express themselves in any other way.

27.8% of perpetrators said that women were abused because they "behaved disrespectfully," while 28.5% of perpetrators said that women "deserved it."

The committee in Turkey's Parliament is continuing research into violence against women.

Another government report, commissioned by the Directorate General on the Status of Women, involved interviewing male perpetrators of violence.Male perpetrators of violence described violence against their partners and children as required by their "responsibility" as disciplinarian in the family. Some of the reasons men gave for abusing their partners included women "not listening," "talking too much," wanting a divorce or "making the man jealous."Many of the men, especially those who reported using verbal and emotional abuse,said women "exaggerated" the situation.

(fk/cm)