Press Statement

KÜLTÜR EMEKÇİLERİ SENDİKASI PRESS STATEMENT

As Kültür Emekçileri Sendikası, we are advocates of an environment in which art is produced freely and workers' rights are protected.

In a well-established arts institution such as Devlet Tiyatroları — and specifically at the Ankara State Theatre — certain female artists are being subjected to systematic pressure and mobbing by the general directorate. As a result of this pressure, female artists are being discredited and victimised. This situation undermines the democratic spirit of art and brings Devlet Tiyatroları into public disrepute.

The disciplinary investigations opened against female artists, the deductions made to their performance bonuses, the repeated summonses for statements related to files submitted to the Inspectorate, the arbitrary refusal to approve leave for off-site engagements, and the referral of alleged in-house incidents to judicial authorities rather than handling them through internal disciplinary procedures — all of this creates an unacceptable situation.

Through these and numerous similar practices, female artists are being targeted, their motivation is being undermined, and their labour is being devalued. Instead of entering into dialogue with these female performers in a manner befitting an arts institution, the General Directorate of Devlet Tiyatroları is pursuing a policy of punishment.

Kültür Emekçileri Sendikası protests these rights violations and declares that it stands firmly behind its female members.