Mothers' only career should be motherhood, Turkish health minister says

ISTANBUL

Health Minister Mehmet Müezzinoğlu (L) visits the first baby born this year in Istanbul at a hospital in Zeytinburnu district. DHA Photo

Mothers should not put any career before motherhood, Turkish Health Minister Mehmet Müezzinoğlu has said during a visit to the first baby born in 2015 in Istanbul early on Jan. 1.Müezzinoğlu and Istanbul Gov. Vasip Şahin visited the baby and congratulated her parents at a hospital in Zeytinburnu while also giving advice to mothers.“Mothers have the career of motherhood, which cannot be possessed by anyone else in the world. Mothers should not put another career other than motherhood at the center of their lives. They should put raising good generations at the center of their attention,” Müezzinoğlu said.The minister also urged mothers to have normal deliveries rather than using a C-section, saying medicine should be used for extraordinary situations.“Every mother’s natural structure is created for normal delivery. Normal delivery should be used. Using medicine is for extraordinary situations. We expect doctors to make the best decisions when needed,” he said.Müezzinoğlu also emphasized the importance of breastfeeding.“Nearly 1,150,000 babies are born every year. This is a huge richness for our country,” he added, conveying his good wishes for all babies being born in 2015.Müezzinoğlu also praised the family after learning the new baby, named Meryem Azra, was the couple’s third child.President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has consistently exhorted women to have at least three children, while also calling abortion “murder” and railing against Caesarian sections.