Istanbul Bar Association reacts to Diyanet's sermon on women's inheritance rights: 'Violation of the secular legal order'

In a statement emphasizing the Turkish Civil Code, which grants equal rights to male and female heirs, and highlighting the Constitution, the Istanbul Bar Association stated, "These discourses not only violate the principle of equality but also constitute a violation of the secular legal order. We invite the Presidency of Religious Affairs to act within the scope of its duties as defined by Article 136 of the Constitution."

The Istanbul Bar Association's Center for Women's Rights issued a statement regarding the following remarks in the Presidency of Religious Affairs' Friday sermon: "Changing the inheritance measure set by our Almighty Lord without mutual consent is contrary to divine justice. Therefore, it is a violation of the rights of others for a person to deprive their daughters of inheritance, or for daughters not to be content with the share ordained by Allah."

The statement recalled that the Presidency of Religious Affairs' remarks on inheritance rights contain expressions contrary to the Constitution's principle of "equality before the law," the obligation to "protect the family based on the principle of equality," and the rule that "the provisions of the Constitution are binding on all state organs." The statement by the Istanbul Bar Association's Center for Women's Rights, titled "Equal inheritance right is a constitutional right," is as follows:

"In accordance with Article 495 and subsequent articles of the Turkish Civil Code, male and female heirs have equal shares. These regulations cannot be changed by religious interpretations; they are binding by virtue of the supremacy of the Constitution and the principle of legality. These discourses aimed at limiting women's inheritance rights not only violate the principle of equality but also constitute a violation of the secular legal order.

Directives contrary to the Constitution and laws are legally invalid and entail responsibility. We invite the Presidency of Religious Affairs to act within the scope of its duties as defined by Article 136 of the Constitution. As the Istanbul Bar Association's Center for Women's Rights, we announce to the public that we will closely monitor all legal initiatives intended to be organized against this, in order to protect women's legal rights, defend the principle of secularism, and uphold the supremacy of the Constitution.

The statements in the Presidency of Religious Affairs' Friday sermon dated August 15, 2025, that ‘Changing the inheritance measure set by our Almighty Lord without mutual consent is contrary to divine justice. Therefore, it is a violation of the rights of others for a person to deprive their daughters of inheritance, or for daughters not to be content with the share ordained by Allah,’ clearly contain expressions contrary to the principle of 'equality before the law' regulated in Article 10 of the Constitution, the obligation to 'protect the family based on the principle of equality' guaranteed in Article 41, and the rule in Article 11 that 'the provisions of the Constitution are binding on all state organs.'"