Ayten Zara
Ayten Zara completed her bachelor’s degree in Guidance and Psychological Counseling from Marmara University, her master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from East London University in England, and her doctorate in Clinical Psychology at East Sussex University.
She has worked with trauma survivor women and their children for a long time at the Oasis Project in England. She started to work as a full-time lecturer in the Department of Psychology at Istanbul Bilgi University since 2000. She was the director of the International Trauma Studies-Istanbul Certificate Program conducted jointly by Bilgi and Columbia University from 2011 to 2015.
Dr. Zara works for protecting individual, family, and community mental health. Bilgi Open Door, Open University Conferences, National Violence and Trauma Prevention Congresses, Information Symposiums Against Violence, Turkey Say Stop Violence Against Children!, and Child Cannot Be Bride / Groom! campaigns are included in these works.
She is the founder and director of the World Human Relief Non-Governmental Organization (www.worldhumanrelief.org), which works for improving the life conditions of disadvantaged children and minorities with disadvantaged conditions in Turkey, Africa and Asia, and to prevent violence and trauma against children. As a peace and human rights worker, she carries out civil society activities, provides consultancy and training in this field, both at home and abroad, in order to promote social peace and disseminate human rights-based approaches.
She has authored the books “Yaşadıkça Psikolojik Sorunlar ve Başa Çıkma Yolları”; “Kadınlar, Erkekler ve Çocuklar için Boşanma Terapisi”.
Child Sexual Abuse Prevention: #KaranlığıArala #BirşeySöyleyin Hareketi
Doç. Dr. Ayten Zara
World Human Relief
İstanbul Bilgi University
Child sexual abuse is the most difficult to detect and often remains hidden. It is undoubtedly difficult to investigate the phenomenon of abuse especially in a society like Turkey, where even talking about the concept of sexuality is suppressed. It is thought that only 5-10% of the sexual abuse cases come out in Turkey. Education sector workers and families need to be educated about child sexual abuse in order to prevent child sexual abuse. Children, on the other hand, need to be educated about their own bodies. Unfortunately, sexual abuse is a very difficult area to talk about and society still resists the idea that family members and relatives can have a potential to sexually abuse children In particular, the belief that the family system should be protected at all costs also causes neglect and abuse to remain hidden and prevents the implementation of research and preventive programs.
Together We Can Prevent Child Sexual Abuse – the movement of #karanlığıarala #birşeysöyleyin (19-21 November, 9-12 April) aims to build a common conscience and consciousness that will protect children from sexual abuse by reaching all segments of society.