Sex on tap! Women's bedroom ban speeds new water system

There was good news yesterday for the men of a southern Turkish village. For a month, women in Sirt have banished their husbands from the bedroom, refusing sex until the men provide running water to the village.

There was good news yesterday for the men of a southern Turkish village. For a month, women in Sirt have banished their husbands from the bedroom, refusing sex until the men provide running water to the village.

Now, the government has agreed to give the men enough pipes to build a new water system, the Anatolia news agency reported. The government directorate of rural affairs agreed to give the men enough pipes to build a five-mile system connecting the village, near the Mediterranean resort of Antalya, to a new water source.

The men would have to lay the pipes themselves, the news agency reported. But it was not clear when the men would receive the pipes or if the women would now end the bedroom boycott.

One woman said the men would have to wait until the pipe system was built. "They won't be able to get into our bedrooms until the water runs through the taps," Fatma Koru said, laughing as she spoke. "The protest will continue."

Ayse Sari, a grandmother, said she didn't think the ban was serious. "It's just something the women said, and it worked," Mrs Sari said. "We got the attention. We were tired of carrying the water. Those who had donkeys were lucky."

For months, the women of Sirt have been forced to line up in front of a trickling village fountain for water that they carry home in large containers. For some, the round-trip involved a lengthy and time- consuming trek.

Faliha Sari was coy about whether she would let her husband back into the bedroom. "Everything starts and ends with water," she said, refusing to elaborate. "We're happy that it is finally arriving."

The men asked local officials this week either to fix their broken-down water system or give them the material to build a new one.

The village leader, Ibrahim Sari – the family name is common in the village – said he has not yet been notified of the decision, but added that he was happy to hear news reports that the government was giving the men the pipes.

"We had asked for the material and are ready to build it ourselves," Mr Sari said. He estimated it would take the men about a month to lay the pipes.

The old water system, which was built in 1974, has been notoriously unreliable.