Some 5.2 mln women use KADES app: Soylu

KADES, an emergency support application for women which directs security units to the place of violence in just minutes upon notification, has been downloaded by more than 5.2 million women since 2018, the country’s interior minister Süleyman Soylu has said.

Interior Minister and Istanbul 2nd District Deputy Candidate Süleyman Soylu met with the heads of women’s NGOs at the Haliç Congress Center within the framework of his election advertising activities.

Beyoğlu Mayor Haydar Ali Yıldız, women representatives from Justice and Development Party (AKP) district branches and party executives attended the program.

Soylu touched upon the measures regarding violence against women during his speech.

Speaking about the number of women working within the Interior Ministry, Soylu stated that the highest number of women district governors in the history of the ministry was 32 in 2016 and that this number increased to 135 in six and a half years.

The minister stated that there are three female governors in the country currently, in the northern province of Bartın and the Central Anatolian provinces of Nevşehir and Afyon.

While explaining the work done to prevent violence against women, Soylu claimed that vital steps have been taken on the issue and that there has been a 12 percent decrease in femicides since 2021, as the annual number of femicides was 309 in 2021 and 279 in 2022.

“We are putting forward serious work on this issue. Our constitution, our laws and the state are working in coordination, and especially as a ministry, we have taken crucial steps here,” Soylu said.

He pointed out that the ministry introduced the KADES application to the country, which has received awards worldwide and is appreciated by many European countries, adding that currently, 5,205,000 women have downloaded the application.

Stressing that their target is for 10 million women to download it, the minister said that the number of complaints made through the app reached 718,000, and the police authorities attended each one within minutes.