In its resolution A/RES/66/127 adopted in the meeting dated 19 December 2011, the United Nations General Assembly designated 15 June as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. Moreover, it urged Member States to develop more effective preventive strategies, design and implement stronger policies, increase their efforts to ensure the welfare and health services of older persons, and to take necessary measures to prevent neglect, abuse and violence against them in order for Member States to identify the problems regarding rights of older persons and the underlying factors of these issues.
Population becoming older with life expectancy becoming higher and birth rates becoming lower is a world-wide phenomenon. According to the United Nations estimate, 9.8% of the world population consists of older persons. According to the data Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) published on 17 March 2023, the elderly population in Türkiye which is accepted to be 65 of age or above was found to be 8.451.669 people and it was stated that the ratio of the elderly population to the total population is 9.9%.
The increase of elderly age group not only brings with it many rights-based issues such as provision of care and health services, access to technological opportunities, access to justice, and age-friendly cities, it also brings the need to make efforts for prevention of possible cases of elder abuse. According to the data of World Health Organization, 1 in every 6 older persons worldwide experienced a type of elderly abuse globally in 2021. This ratio was said to be higher in nursing homes and elderly care centers. In addition, due to the rapid increase in the elderly population in many countries, it is estimated that the cases of abuse towards the elderly will increase.
Our Institution, main mission of which is to protect the right to equal treatment of persons on the basis of human dignity and prevention of discrimination in exercising the legally acknowledged rights and freedoms, continues its efforts to prevent the cases of elder abuse which older persons may face with the visits it makes to nursing homes and elderly care centers within the scope of its national preventive mechanism mandate, prevention of discrimination older persons may face within the scope of its Anti-Discrimination and Equality mandate and its awareness-raising efforts and reporting within the scope of its Protection and Promotion of Human Rights mandate. In line with these, our Institution celebrates the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day with the hopes of a world where all kinds of abuse against older persons end and they can exercise their fundamental rights and freedoms in the most effective way without being subjected to discrimination.
Respectfully announced to the public.