Survey: 93.5 pct of Turks support death penalty for rape

According to a survey conducted by the Ankara-based Objective Research Center (ORC), 93.5 percent of participants said they would support reintroducing the death penalty for crimes such as rape, treason or terrorism.

A previous survey carried out by ORC in March indicated support for such a law at 92.6 percent.

Turkey abolished the death penalty in 2002, 18 years after Turkey last executed a prisoner during the post-1980 coup period. The previous exercise of the death penalty was largely confined to periods after military coups, such as the 1961 hanging of former Prime Minister Adnan Menderes after the military coup in 1960, and the hanging of three prominent left-wing militants in 1972.

The death penalty was replaced in 2002 by aggravated life imprisonment, or life sentence in isolation with restricted access.

Turkey briefly considered the penalty of chemical castration for sex offenders, which never passed the stage of draft legislation. İsmail Ok, a lawmaker from the opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), said at a press conference yesterday that he presented a draft proposal to Parliament to enact a law stipulating sex offenders be castrated. "If you don't want a repeat of these serious crimes against our children and women, we have to implement this," Ok said.