Four women, whose family members have become unemployed due to the Covid-19 outbreak, have began to make pastry products in their bakery “Kadın Eli Tandır Evi” (Women’s Hands, Bakery House) in Van (Wan), Eastern Turkey.

The Covid-19 outbreak has spread across the world as governments implement plans to combat against the virus and with various differing restrictions, economies are on the brink of collapse.

The virus is also spreading widely in Turkey while the government implements new precautions and policies. Working people and poor people have been the worst negatively affected from these government policies. Many shopkeepers have been forced to close their stores as a result of lockdowns.

Unsurprisingly, women are at the top of the list of people who have become unemployed.

Women created their altenative

While many women have lost their jobs during the lockdown, imposed by the government, men have also been ‘locked down’ in their home and women have suffered as a result with an increase in domestic violence against women.

Some women have responded by stating that “Life Does Not Fit Into the Home!” and have begun to create their own initiatives.

Four women came together and opened the “Kadın Eli Tandır Evi” (Women’s Hands, Bakery House) store in İpekyolu district in Van (Wan) city of Turkey (Bakur).

The women established the bakery with limited capital making various traditional breads such as lavaş (thin bread), taptapa (bitlis bread) and kuluça (Mardin bread).

They also do the marketing and advertising for their bakery products.

The women have been pleased and proud of the positive response and the overwhelming satisfaction of their customers.

The women of the bakery say that other women living in different local neighbourhoods have been so inspired by the women’s bakery initiative that many are also planning similar projects and have asked them for their advice and opinion.

According to JinNews report, Remziye Karakoyun, one of women running the bakery said that every one in her family had become unemployed due to the Covid 19 pandemic and explained that they have had serious economical difficulties for a long time.

She said that although she was already making bread at home that this was the first time she had actually made financial gain from such work.

Economical Freedom

Remziye said that she woke up at 5.00a.m every morning to work in the bakery and said that the four women shared the hard job of kneading the dough every day. After the drough was ready, the four women, began together to make and bake the delicous breads.

She added that women had the right to be heard when they earned their own money and ended, “I think every woman should stand on their own two feet, economically speaking.”