The “Trainer Training on Evidence Collection and Evidence Security in Sexual Assault,” jointly conducted by Üsküdar Üniversitesi Institute of Addiction and Forensic Sciences and the Ministry of Health, was organized. The training, held between June 11-12-13 this year with the participation of obstetrics and gynecology specialists working in Ministry of Health hospitals, took place at the Üsküdar Üniversitesi Central Campus Ayhan Songar Conference Hall. In the organized training, 62 individuals made presentations.
The event was attended by Prof. Dr. Sevil Atasoy, Director of the Institute of Addiction and Forensic Sciences and Vice-Rector, Dr. Tuğba Ünsal Sapan, Deputy Head of the Forensic Sciences Department and Forensic Scientist, along with numerous forensic scientists as trainers.
Prof. Dr. Sevil Atasoy: “Sexual violence is a serious public health problem...”
In the training attended by obstetrics and gynecology specialists working in Ministry of Health hospitals, Prof. Dr. Sevil Atasoy stated: “We must make a significant difference in our country. I hope our messages reach broad audiences. We have been working on this for many years. Sexual assault is a serious crime that affects millions of people. According to the World Health Organization, one in three women experiences sexual violence in her lifetime. This is not just a situation faced by women, but also a very serious trauma faced by men and male children. However, statistics are always given based on women. Sexual violence is a serious public health problem. Unfortunately, only 14 percent of victims report it to the police...”
“Reporting is low because the victim is blamed...”
Prof. Dr. Sevil Atasoy also mentioned that the reporting rate of sexual assault victims in Turkey is low: “When looking at the reporting rate of sexual assault, Turkey has a low score in this regard. That is, reporting is low because, in a sense, the victim is blamed. The victim is blamed with phrases like 'If she hadn't dressed like that, if she hadn't gone there, if she hadn't been with him...etc.' We know that the reporting rate is low because victims are ostracized or even killed within the family. There are many countries in the world where the situation is similar. We primarily see that cultural norms prevent them from reporting due to the low reporting rate.”
“Success depends on proper crime scene investigation.”
Emphasizing that a thorough crime scene investigation is essential to identify the assailant, Prof. Dr. Sevil Atasoy said: “If a crime scene is not properly investigated, regardless of the type of crime, be it theft or murder, success depends solely on the proper conduct of the crime scene investigation. Bodies are also a crime scene. This is a genetic analysis. The reason why biological sample collection is essential is that we aim to eventually obtain an idea of who the assailant is with nearly one hundred percent accuracy by performing a genetic analysis.”
Participation was high again this year...
The training provided was followed with great interest by the participants again this year.
During the event, participants were informed about the legal aspects, criminal sanctions, responsibilities of physicians, and the secure evidence collection process in sexual assault.
