In the words of Hatice Öztürk: “For the first time, I felt heard, supported, and stronger”
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Hatice Öztürk works at the Women’s Life Centre in Adana, which was established by the Women’s Freedom and Equality Association (KÖVED) and is supported by UN Women through a project funded by the Government of Japan. She first came to the Centre as a beneficiary, receiving psychological support and participating in empowerment sessions, and later joined the team as a support staff member. Today, she serves as a health mediator, working within her community to help prevent forced and early marriages. Öztürk’s journey illustrates how UN Women’s support helps create safe spaces where women can build confidence, gain knowledge, and become trusted voices in their communities.
“My name is Hatice. I am 31 years old, married, and a mother of three. My education ended in the fifth grade, after I was told, ‘Girls do not study,’ and taken out of school. To support my family, I started working in the textile sector and stayed there for five years. But in my family’s eyes, my future had already been decided: I would get married.
I married at 17 and held my first child in my arms at 18. At that age, I did not yet understand what motherhood truly meant; I was still a child myself.
The years that followed looked much the same: housework, childcare, and a life mostly confined to the home. Marriage meant serving your husband, your household, your mother-in-law, and your father-in-law. That was the life I lived. In many ways, I grew up alongside my three children. Today, my daughter is 13, my older son is 11, and my younger son is 9.
One morning, while taking my children to school, a friend told me that a Women’s Life Centre had opened in our neighbourhood. She said, ‘Come, let’s go together, there are very nice activities.’ I went with her, and that day the direction of my life changed.
At the Women’s Life Centre, I learned things I had never known before: women’s rights, children’s rights, women’s health. I received psychological support, both for myself and for my children. For the first time, I felt heard, supported, and stronger. The Centre was a safe place where I could share my struggles.
One day, I said that I wanted to work and they asked me, ‘Would you like to work here?’. It was a huge opportunity. As a support staff, I open the doors, clean the rooms, and water the flowers. I also take care of the laundry room, helping women who bring their laundry. I set up my own appointment system and organise the process so that nothing gets mixed up.
After I started working, many things changed at home as well. My husband became my biggest supporter. A man who had never shared housework before now vacuums the house and washes the dishes. The children adapted to this new routine too. I learned how vital economic independence is. When a woman earns her own income, she can make her own decisions. She can support both her home and her children.
Today, I am also part of a project working to prevent forced and early marriages. Six women, including myself, serve as health mediators. We visit homes, talk to women, and explain the health, psychological, and social impacts of early marriage.
My hope is that all women’s lives can be transformed through safe spaces, solidarity, and knowledge. Sometimes, all it takes to change a woman’s life is to listen. I was listened to and then I became stronger.”
The Women’s Life Centre was established by the Women’s Freedom and Equality Association (KÖVED) and the Women’s Coalition, and implemented in partnership with the Adana Metropolitan Municipality. Through the project “Women’s and Girls’ Lifesaving Access to Protection Services in the Aftermath of the Earthquake,” implemented by UN Women with financial support of the Government of Japan, Women’s Life Centres provide inclusive and accessible services for women, girls, and families. These include psychosocial and legal counselling, empowerment workshops, skills development activities, and community gatherings.