Therapy for rape victims with Turkish TV series

Turkish family doctor Hatice Yalçın, living in the U.S. state of Florida, provides therapy for rape victims by having them watch the Turkish TV series “Fatmagül’ün Suçu Ne?” (What is Fatmagül’s Fault?).

 Yalçın’s purpose is to keep the women, between the ages of 19 and 32, from hating all men and plant the idea there are men in the world like the “Kerim” character in the series. Kerim, played by Engin Akyürek, is the main male character in the TV series. He is the husband of main female character, portrayed by Beren Saat, Fatmagül, who is a gang rape victim, and protects her.

When it was first aired, the series caused controversy among people claiming “it legitimates marriage to the rapist,” since Kerim was with the three rapists during the incident and did not prevent them from raping Fatmagül. 

According to Yalçın, her patients feel better when they see Kerim. She works for a clinic which was established with the contributions of volunteers and focuses on the treatment of rape victims. She started doing this when her best friend’s daughter committed suicide after being raped. She has been working for the clinic for nine years and administering the “Fatmagül” therapy for 1.5 years.

The Kerim character has become a phenomenon among rape victims, who watch all the dialogues between Kerim and Fatmagül with Yalçın’s translation.

She said the real success was Akyürek, adding, “We want to host him at our clinic.” The rape victims describe Kerim as an ideal man who does not exist in real life.