Women in Management -2: Human and Humankind

Like many people, I have taken on multiple roles throughout this brief journey we call life. One of them is being a father. Yes, I am a father; moreover, I am the father of four sons. Let me say this upfront: I do not mention this out of pride, but rather with a sense of sadness yet acceptance; unfortunately, I was not blessed with being a father to a daughter. It seems that this was how the Creator intended it… I truly wish that my dear wife were not the “only woman” in our home and within our immediate family. In my previous article, I mentioned that “throughout history, across different eras and cultures, women have always stood out as symbols of justice, symbols of freedom, and symbols of homeland.” After all, would a person who has made such a historical observation and expressed such a view not wish for a “more balanced” demographic structure within his own home?

Men like me who have sisters or older sisters can develop an “egalitarian and inclusive way of thinking” at a very early age. Of course, family culture and the way parents treat their children are also important; I consider myself fortunate that, together with my brothers, my sister and my older sister, we grew up receiving equal attention and affection from our parents. This is exactly why I would have very much wished for my sons to grow up under the same circumstances as I did and reach adulthood with similar experiences. Nevertheless, together with my dear wife, we are doing our very best to raise our children to become inclusive-minded, healthy, and ethical individuals. All of my sons discovered at a very early age that their mother is clearly superior to their father in many areas! Everyone has roles or areas in which they are more skilled and excel; what matters is being able to contribute and make a difference, starting with those closest to us, and looking out for one another. I truly remember it as if it were yesterday; years ago, while watching the film “Hacivat Karagöz Neden Öldürüldü?”(Why Were Hacivat and Karagöz Killed?) at home with my wife and our first son, who was our only child at the time, our five-year-old son was deeply surprised by the female warriors called “Bacılar” in the film, whose leader was portrayed by Şebnem Dönmez. He asked, “Were there female warriors among the Ottomans?” After telling our son that, of course, there were, and that there are many examples of female warriors and female leaders throughout different periods of Turkish history, we were unable to answer his second question: “So what happened to them? Where are they now?” Years ago, my wife and I did this research, and I recommend that you do the same: explore “Anatolian Women’s Union: Bâciyân-ı Rûm, Kadın Dervişler & Bacı Erenleri” and read about their fate, and how they quietly disappeared from the stage of history.

Across different geographies and historical periods, there are countless examples of major struggles and wars that were shaped by “the active participation of women.” The French Revolution would not have taken place if French women had not played a significant role as a mass movement! The turning point was the women’s march to the Palace of Versailles on October 5, 1789. Parisian women marched to the Palace of Versailles to protest high bread prices and succeeded in bringing King Louis XVI back to Paris; this event changed the course of France’s history at the time and gave courage to all men who were considered subjects of the monarchy. Another significant revolution, the Haitian Revolution, was the only major successful uprising carried out “against slavery”. Black women slaves played active roles not only in armed resistance but also in intelligence, support networks, and organized movements. Sanité Bélair, as a female soldier and officer, fought as a commander in the struggle against the French and became one of the symbols of the fight for freedom by refusing to step back even when she was executed. Do you know how the Soviet Union managed to gain superiority on the battlefield against Nazi Germany during the Second World War? Unlike the Nazis, it was achieved through the mobilization of an entire nation, with women and men going to the front lines together! At this point, I can give two highly striking examples; the first is the 588th Night Bomber Regiment, known as the “Night Witches,” whose pilots were entirely women and who achieved great success in striking Nazi targets. The second example is Lyudmila Pavlichenko, a female soldier who became “one of the most successful snipers in history” by neutralizing 309 enemy soldiers. However, another Russian sniper from the same period, Vasily Zaytsev, became the figure who was featured in Hollywood films. Please look up how many Nazi soldiers the male sniper Zaytsev—a far more famous figure—neutralized during the war, and compare that to the female soldier Pavlichenko! Just as the Soviet Union gained the upper hand over the Nazis on the battlefield during World War II, this is one of the commonalities between the Vietnam War and the Turkish War of Independence. In both cases, the occupying forces launched their attacks with male soldiers, but were defeated by a people who fought back together, with women and men standing side by side! Especially our own National Struggle… Kara Fatma, Halime Çavuş, Rahime Hatun, Hafız Selman İzbeli, Gördesli Makbule, Çete Ayşe, Nezahat Onbaşı, Kılavuz Hatice… Which one should I write about? There were countless women who took active roles on the front lines, as well as countless others who carried out vital duties behind the front, transporting supplies, weapons, and ammunition—especially those who carried munitions by ox carts along the İnebolu–Kastamonu–Ankara route. Of course, Şerife Bacı is a symbol of this struggle; she lost her life to the cold while carrying ammunition in harsh winter conditions, but the ammunition she was carrying was successfully delivered! Halide Edib Adıvar, both as a writer and an activist, played a crucial role in organizing, raising awareness among, and mobilizing the public through her efforts in communication and advocacy, while also serving on the front lines. There is, of course, a reason why I have talked so much about military service. Because the military profession is the most obvious example of gender inequality observed anywhere in the world! Today, among more than 200 countries, only North Korea, Israel, Eritrea, and Norway have compulsory military service systems that also apply to women. The first three countries implement this system because they consider it a necessity (the common point among these three countries is that they face external security threats and have limited human resources compared to their perceived defense needs). Norway, on the other hand, applies compulsory military service for women primarily with the aim of putting the principles of inclusiveness and equality into practice.

Have you ever heard of Rosa Parks? Under a law in effect in the U.S. at the time, the front seats on buses were reserved for white people, and the back seats for Black people. The seats in between were where Black people could sit until the white seats were filled. When a white passenger was left standing, the driver would move the “colored” sign separating the seats occupied by Black and white passengers further toward the back of the bus. Black passengers had to remain standing if there was no space in the back, and if there was not even enough room to stand, they had to get off the bus and wait at the stop for the next one. The law of the state also prohibited Black and white passengers from sitting side by side in the same row of seats. On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks became the courageous woman who refused to comply with this law! When the bus driver asked why she would not stand up, she replied, “Because I don’t believe I should have to get up and give my seat to someone else.” The driver then called the police, and Rosa Parks was arrested on charges of “disorderly conduct.” Within just a few days, more than 40,000 people (including white citizens) began protesting and chose not to ride the buses, instead walking to work. Faced with the growing public opposition, the government gradually took steps back and revised its laws to make them “more inclusive and egalitarian.” Had it not been for this woman—who was awarded a Gold Medal by the U.S. Congress in 1999 and passed away on October 24, 2005—the United States might still be a country that enforces racist laws today. Yet, despite this progress, the World Economic Forum estimates that, under current conditions, gender equality in the United States may not be fully achieved for another 200 years, even though the country is often regarded as a nation of equality and freedom. Try to imagine when this equality might finally be achieved for the rest of the world! Do you think humanity should really have to wait that long? Because in order to cope with the increasing challenges facing our world and our lives, we need “the representation of everyone in society and the utilization of all available talents.” We need to begin at every level by strengthening institutions in order to embed the principle of equality throughout all layers of society and make this transformation happen as soon as possible. Women need to have a greater presence in the highest decision-making bodies of our commercial enterprises and companies, which are the institutions that shape our economy! It is easy to say, “Life is a shared responsibility.” The real challenge is to live in a way that does not deceive oneself and does not contradict this truth. I have a friend who owns a very large company, and I know how deeply devoted he is to his daughter; for him, it is as if his daughter, whom he has raised with the utmost care and affection, stands on one side and the rest of the world on the other. Yet this same friend, who loves his daughter dearly and, despite having sons, says that he only understood what it truly meant to be a father after his beloved daughter was born, follows what kind of policy do you think when selecting executives for his own company’s senior management? He gives positions only to men. When I could no longer hold back one day and asked him why he made such a choice, he answered exactly as follows: “I can communicate more comfortably with men; I can give them clear messages about what needs to be done. I don’t want to be unable to act authoritatively toward women in the workplace and have that harm my business.” Not only in Türkiye, but believe me, in many parts of the world—especially in Eastern societies—there are so many men who, based on this absurd justification, do not appoint women to senior executive positions within their own companies. A report published by Deloitte in 2023 stated that the global average representation of women on corporate boards was around 20%. Equileap’s “2023 Gender Equality Global Report & Ranking” revealed that women’s representation among the world’s largest 100 companies was approximately 30%. Despite its advanced technological development and economic prosperity, Japan—a country from the East—has a rate of only around 10%.

For Türkiye to rise and succeed in its economic journey, our most valuable resource—our human capital—must be utilized to its full potential! As we approach the halfway point of the 21st century, neither my mind nor my conscience can accept that particularly educated and empowered individuals continue to make decisions that lack inclusiveness or hold perspectives that are inconsistent with gender equality. There is no need to prolong the discussion any further. For those who insist on drawing a distinction between women and men, the late great master Neşet Ertaş already provided the necessary definition: “Women are human. We men are only the humankind!”