JINHA

NEWS CENTER – Thousands of people with disabilities, hospitalized people and women in shelters will be unable to vote in Turkey's June election if the state does not take action to guarantee their right to vote, says the group Women's Coalition.

Turkey's Supreme Election Board still hasn't issued any response to women's groups' urgent call to action to guarantee the right to vote to women staying in women's shelters.

Because voting takes place only at neighborhood polling stations in Turkey, Women's Coalition says the lack of provision for accessibility excludes thousands of people from exercising their fundamental right to vote. This includes not only women living in shelters (who do not have access to their registered polling stations), but people with disabilities and chronic illnesses; migrant workers; and those who are illiterate or do not speak Turkish. The Women's Coalition say the Supreme Election Board has issued no response to their inquiries about how these groups' right to vote will be guaranteed, although there is less than a month to go until the June election.

The most recent official statistics, from 2013, indicated that there were 600 women in Turkey's women's shelters, but Women's Coalition says the number is likely much higher in 2015. "We have not been able to get any information on how those living in state or private facilities will be able to vote of their own free will, how the secrecy of their votes will be protected, how facility administrators will be kept from influencing voters' preferences or how these people will be protected from negative consequences of their election results," said the coalition.

Turkish law's only provision for people with disabilities such as blindness or other physical disabilities states that they can vote with the assistance of a nearby voter. Those who are illiterate can ask for help understanding the ballot, but must enter the voting booth alone. None of these laws addresses people with disabilities who cannot physically reach the polling station or people (such as women in shelters or migrant laborers) who have difficulty registering for a local polling booth. In addition, current law poses issues of stolen votes for those with disabilities or illiteracy who can reach the polling station.

(zd/fk/cm)