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antifa-vakblad Alert!
TIHV
Human Rights Foundation of Turkey
2005
Human Rights Report of Turkey
Ankara, 2006
Esat Atmaca: Unknown person knifed Esat Atmaca
(22) to death in Gazi quarter (Istanbul) on 8 April. In
the incident Cemal Baykiran and Mustafa Dogan were
injured. Esat Atmaca was known for being close to the
leftist "Front of Rights and Freedoms".
The elder brother Esat Atmaca stated that they had
been on their way home when a group of people had
approached them and seemingly to be drunk they had
immediately knifed his brother without saying
anything. He added that the same people, presumably
members of the MHP protected by the police, had tried
to stop him and take possession of his car.
The father Bayram Atmaca added that the same group
had attacked him as well. He said that these people were
living in the same quarter and he could identify them.
In the night of the incident Molotov cocktails were thrown
into the café of Yasar Güler, father of Kabil Güler said to
have been involved in the killing. Kabil Güler reportedly
had a criminal record of unauthorized possession of arms,
kidnapping and robbery. Abuzer Cihan, living in the
quarters, stated that the family of Esat Atmaca had not
attacked the café. There were groups who tried to bring
back the days of an old conflict.
Kabil Güler (35), Ali Subasi (23), Sinan Yavuz (23)
and Adem Yilmaz were arrested on 12 April in
connection with the killing.
Abdulrezak Özdemir: On 6 September seasonal
workers in Kartavuk village of Akçakoca district
(Düzce) had a fight during which Abdulrezak Özdemir
died. Village headman Idris Post stated that the fight
broke out when some workers from east and
southeastern Turkey shouted slogans in favor of the
PKK.
The daily Özgür Gündem claimed that right-wingers
attacked the workers and one of them fired at them
killing A. Özdemir who was registered in Beytüssebap
district (Sirnak). The women Sükran Yigit was injured
(also see the chapter on the Kurdish question).
Lynch Attempt in Rize: On 2 November 15 TAYAD
members went from Hopa district (Artvin) to Rize to
commemorate the death of the sisters who had died
during the death fast action in Istanbul-Küçükarmutlu
Canan Kulaksiz (on 15 April 2001) and Zehra Kulaksiz
(on 29 June 2001) with a visit to their graves were
attacked by a group of right-wingers.
During the first attack the police did not intervene. In
Atmeydani quarter a second attack followed and the
group could hardly escape before police officers took
them to the city center. While the police maintained
that they would be taken out of town a third attack
followed at Cumhuriyet Square where a group of 300
people stopped the minibus. The crowd broke the
window and beat the TAYAD members. The police
dispersed the crowd by shooting in the air. Finally the
attacked person could be taken out of town.
Zeynep Ertugrul who had been among the attacked
TAYAD members stated that there had been no other
intentions than the visit of the graves. No banners had
been unfolded and no press conference had been held.
Civilian dressed police officers had demanded that they
leave the town; otherwise they would arrange that the
people beat them up. On return from the graves the
police had tried to provoke the people claiming that
they were members of the PKK. But except for an
organized group no person from the population had
followed the provocation. The police had stopped them
at 8 different places and at each place stones had
been thrown at them.
Rize Governor Enver Salihoglu maintained that the
TAYAD members had provoked the people, but the
intervention of the police had prevented more serious
incidents.
Later a group of members of the Front for Rights and
Freedoms filed an official complaint against Rize
Mayor Halil Bakirci and several police officers.
Allegedly the mayor had said that had he known who
the people were he had hit them himself. Abdülkadir
Kart, deputy for the AKP in Rize reportedly said that
the group had learned its lesson and would not come
back to Rize.
A similar incident happened in Samsun on 13
December. Four people distributing the journal of the
Federation of Association for Basic Rights and
Freedoms were attacked. The group said that a
minibus with 15 people had come and had beaten
them.
Further Incidents
On 5 January Sedat Erol, student at Konya Selçuklu
University was attacked by right-wingers. Some 10
people attacked him and injured him with a knife.
Sedat Erol had to be taken to hospital. In connection
with the incident Savas Karaca and a person with the
first name of Kürsad were detained. Sedat Erol had
named Üzeyir Taha Iscam as the aggressor.
On 10 March a huge crowd of right-wingers attacked
left-wing students at Çukurova University (Adana). The
student Davut Adli was injured.
Nedim Degirmenci, former ÇHD chair and board
member of Izmir Bar Association was attacked by rightwingers
on 24 March. Allegedly Degirmenci had torn
down a poster with a Turkish flag in an Internet-Café
and, therefore, 10 to 15 people beat him with iron
sticks. Degirmenci had a broken chin and teeth and
had to be taken to hospital.
On 24 March a fight broke out between students of the
TKP and right-wingers at Marmara University. Four
students including one from the TKP were injured.
Reports from Bursa indicated that the DEHAP member
Ugur Ögredik was tortured by members of the Nizam-i
Alem Union because he had participated in activities of
DEHAP. His father Mehmet Ögredik complained to the
HRA and complained that first seven people from the
Nizam-i Alem Union had beaten his son in a café.
Later their boss Sait Ali Ugar had come and they had
taken his son to the offices of the union. Ugur Ögredik
said: "They were 15 people. They grabbed my arms
and hit me on my eyes. I was not allowed to speak.
They beat and when they had washed way the blood
they beat me again." The aggressor had taken him to
Orhangazi State Hospital after three hours. At the
hospital he was given a report certifying 10 days'
inability to work.
Lawyer Deniz Büyük later stated that in connection
with the incident I.E., I.Ç. and B.B. had been indicted
fro causing bodily harm.
On 11 April a group of right-wingers attacked left-wing
students who were distributing leaflets at Sivas
Cumhuriyet University. The security forces intervened
and detained 48 students including 13 right-wingers.
Among them 18 students were later arrested.
The EMEP members Erhan Batga and Hüseyin Kiyak
alleged that they had been tortured in the offices of
Günesli Idealists' Union in Istanbul on 16 April. A
group of MHP members had taken them there and
beaten them. The police had come and rescued them.
In connection with the incident six people were
detained. Among the detainees Serhat Alkaç was
arrested on 18 April. Bayram Yildirim, Ümit Sevindik
and Tahir Çimen were released.
On 23 April right-wingers beat the student Mehmet
Emin Özyalçin from Gazi University. He reported:
"When I left school I saw some people at the door and
became suspicious. I went upstairs to the Ihsan Küreli
from the teachers' staff. I asked him to accompany me,
otherwise I would not be safe. Just when I wanted to
leave the room the 15 people stormed in and beat me
up. When the teacher intervened they ran away."
Özyalçin received a medical report certifying three
days' sick leave and filed an official complaint.
On 24 April students from the 9 September University
wanted to put up posters for the 1st of May. They were
attacked by right-wingers. Later plain clothes
detectives and finally a growing crowd also attacked
them. One of the victims, Atilla Sultan said:
"The tension because of the posters was going down
when at the entrance to the campus the police and
special security forces gathered. We wanted to know
whether the friends insides needed anything, when six to
seven officers moved towards. Stones were thrown at
them and they drew their arms. But when they saw the
crowd they retreated. Inside the campus the attacks of
fascists continued for a while. When we left school we
were followed by a civilian car. We saw that right-wingers
beat our friend Emre Zencir in a side street and went to
rescue him. At this moment a police officer pointed a gun
to my temple and forced me to lie down. Four police
officers beat me with belts and sticks. They dragged me
by my hair over the ground for some 50 meters. Close to
the union of idealists' the police officers tried to provoke
the people around saying that I had burned a flag and
they should kill me. I was beaten for half an hour.
Uniformed police officers came but did not intervene.
Later I was taken to Buca State Hospital and was given a
medical report."
At the beginning of May right-wingers attacked leftwing
and Kurdish students in Manisa. According to a
report in the daily Özgür Gündem the student with the
first name of Ali Riza was taken to the building of the
Idealists' Union and threatened on 6 May. On 2 May
the students Cenk Baskurt and Osman Sezer had been
attacked by a group of 20 to 25 persons. On 4 May
Hamza Sin and Hüseyin Sahinkoç had been beaten
heavily. The fights continued and later the police
raided a café where the students were. Hüseyin
Siyahkoç, Hamza Sin, Cenk Baskurt, Osman Sezer and
the right-wingers Ilyas Çelik and Serkan Mert were
detained. On 5 May right-wingers beat the student
Yusuf Solmaz. In the evening the right-wingers entered
two flats with Kurdish students and beat five of them
up.
On 6 May right-wingers beat the students Naif Sahin
and Murat Ekmen from the Technical University in
Giresun. Reportedly three right-wingers were detained.
During the spring festival at the Pamukkale University
in Denizli right-wingers attacked students from the
Socialist Democracy Party (SDP) on 20 May. During
the fight five left-wing students, one security officer
and three right-wingers were injured. Eight people
were detained. On 23 May right-wingers attacked
left-wingers again resulting in injuries to 10 students.
One of them was named as Ilkay Simsek.
On 24 May right-wingers attacked Kurdish students
at the Industrial Profession Lyceum in Denizli. A
student with the first name of Ender was injured with
a knife. Three other students were injured, too.
Reportedly the police detained two people among the
attackers. On 25 May eight people were attacked by
right-wingers, when they left the office of the SDP.
The student Gürkan Çelik and the right-winger
Muhammet Tekin were injured. The police detained
12 people, most of them members of the SDP. On 27
May one right-wing student and the student Umut
Göllü were arrested.
On 25 May right-wingers attacked left-wing students
in a students' hostel in Istanbul-Altunizade. They
injured Hamdullah Bayram with a hatchet.
On 1 June right-wingers attacked left-wing students
at Atatürk University in Erzincan. Five students were
injured with sticks and hatchets.
In the evening of 2 June the police separated two
quarreling groups in front of the faculty. Left-wing
students staged a demonstration and the police used
pepper gas and beat them in order to disperse the
crowd. Allegedly the police did not intervene in group
of right-winger strolling around with sticks.
On 14 June a fight broke out at Ankara University
when three right-wing students threatened leftwingers
with knives. Kamil Ortakçi was injured with a
knife and Mehmet Baran was hit at his head with a
stone. Reportedly one student was detained.
Two days later right-wingers attacked left wingstudents.
In the fight the left-wing students Göçmen
Us, Bahtiyar Tuncer and Kiper Birol were injured.
Reportedly Mehmet Çetin had been among the
attackers. He had been detained after injuring Kamil
Ortakçi but had been released shortly afterwards.
Members of the Beautification Association (BA) in 1
May (Mustafa Kemal) quarter in Ümraniye district
(Istanbul) were attacked by right-wingers in the
nights of 13 July. Ali Haydar Saygili (ESP), Yoldas
Akat (BA) and Ümit Aslan (BA) were injured with
firearms. The journal Atilim claimed that the
attackers had been organized by dealers of hashish.
On 11 July an armed attack was conducted on the
headquarters of the BBP in Ankara. Some 20 to 25
people broke the windows and shot. They fled when
the police officers and security personnel in the
building shot into the air.
Member of the Idealists' Union in Sariyer attacked
people waiting in front of the courthouse in Istanbul
to observe a trial against DHKP/C on 26 July. Musa
Keser, journalist of Milliyet, was beaten by the rightwingers.
Dursun Karabacak, chair of Sariyer Idealists'
Union, was detained but released shortly afterwards.
Some 20 MHP member attacked Yusuf Ocak (18), Murat
Keskin (19) and Ilhan Dogan (23) in Sultançiftligi quarter
(Istanbul-Gaziosmanpasa) on 7 August. In reaction a
huge crowd gathered in front of the MHP building and
demanded that the attackers were handed over to them.
The crowd threw stones at the building but the police
dispersed them with gas bombs.
On 6 September right-wingers attacked the exhibition
of "50 Years The events of 6 and 7 September"
organized by the History Foundation, the Helsinki
Citizens' Assembly and the Helsinki Foundation of
Human Settlements. They destroyed various
photographs and threw eggs. The police detained the
attackers. Three of them were released the same day.
The Foundation of Education and Culture of the
Idealists' Union declared that the Idealists' Union was
not responsible for the attack.
During fight of two right-wing groups at Ankara Gazi
University on 24 October seven people were injured.
There names were given as: Kaan Y., Mükremin K., Utku
Y., Muhammet O., Yilmaz E., Bahri K. and Çagdas G.
Ismail G. was detained in connection with the incident.
On 26 October right-wingers attacked students at
Ankara Gazi University who did not fast. Seven
students were injured.
The following day some 500 students gathered to
protest the Law on Higher Education. The police
dispersed them under force while students threw
stones at them. No detentions were made.
On 1 November Izmir HRA conducted a press
conference for the student Cüneyt Biyiksiz from the 9
September University. He stated that 12 members of
Buca Idealists' Union hat attacked him on 27
October. He was able to run away. Kamil Agaoglu,
executive of the HRA, said that they identified the
attackers and filed an official complaint.
On 13 November students of Mugla University
protested the Semdinli events (see the Kurdish
Question). They were attacked by a group of rightwingers.
The police intervened and prevented further
fights. The following day right and left-wing students
clashed outside university. About 20 students were
injured. The police detained 45 people. On the same
day left-wing students held a press conference in
town in protest at the attack of right-wingers. The
police detained eight students.
On 8 December right-wing students attacked an
unnamed student from a students' hostel in Tekirdag.
The student was injured with a knife.
On 11 December MHP members attacked O.T. from
Mugla University. They suspected him of speaking
Kurdish although he had spoken Arabic with his
friends. After the incident some students threw stones
at the office of the Idealists' Union. The police
detained 13 students. They were released the next
day.
At Thrace University right-winger attacked the
students Emin Uysal, Gökhan Bilmez and Erdal Ates
Sönmez because they listened to Kurdish music.
Uysal and Bilmez were slightly injured. Nobody was
detained.
On 13 December right-wingers attacked left-wing
students at Euphrates University in Elazig when they
distributed leaflets. The students Kürsat Taskin and
Serkan Öz were injured with knives.
On 20 December right-winger attacked students at
Kocatepe University in Usak because they sang
Kurdish songs. Mehmet Ali Eren, Ferhat Akkaya and
the right-wing student Metin Göl were injured. The
police detained 15 people. Eleven of them were
released the next day.
On 21 December right-wingers attacked left-wing
students at Istanbul University. The right-wingers
reportedly carried arms. The police detained seven leftwing
students.
Developments in "Old" Cases
Kenan Günes: The trial against Serdar Bas, known as
the leader of right-winger at Kirikkale University,
charged in connection with the killing of Kenan Günes
on 27 September 2004 continued in 2005. The
defense complained that the witnesses Resul Eroglu,
Süleyman Akyildirim and Haci Murat Tok had given
false testimony. The court instructed the prosecution to
investigate this claim.
The public prosecutor in Istanbul indicted 47 left-wing
students, seven of them in pre-trial detention and 14
right-wing students, one of them in pre-trial detention
in connection with fights in November and December
2004. The students were accused of hindering the
lessons, causing damage to public property and
resisting officials. Defense lawyer Olcay Yanar stated
that the indictment was copied from the minutes of the
police. The prosecutor had not investigated the
incident. The first hearing was held at Istanbul Heavy
Penal Court No. 1 on 4 February. The arrest warrants
were lifted and the hearing was adjourned to 13 May.
No further development was reported in 2005.
On complaint of the right-wing students Ismail Oguz
Basaga and Abdurrahman Özkümüs 12 left-wing students
from Ankara University who had been attacked on 4
December 2004 because they did not fast were indicted.
The trial started at Ankara Penal Court No. 6 on 1
February. The defendants Cihan Baykal, Berkan Kayacan,
Firat Belen, Kamil Ortakçi, Önder Keles, Özgü Dinler,
Sevket Murat Dünsen, Kubilay Han, Cemal Keskin, Hasan
Yapici, Ömür Demirel and Inan Kaya stated that they had
not participated in the fight. The hearing was adjourned to
17 March. No further developments were reported in
2005.
(This information is taken from the annual report of 2005 of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT).)
Incidents in Turkey - November / December 2004
Incidents in Turkey - September / October 2004
Incidents in Turkey - May / June 2004
Incidents in Turkey - April 2004
Incidents in Turkey - March 2004
Incidents in Turkey - February 2004
Incidents in Turkey - January 2004
Incidents in Turkey - December 2003
Incidents in Turkey - November 2003
Incidents in Turkey - Incidents in Turkey - September / October 2003
Incidents in Turkey - Incidents in Turkey - July / August 2003
Incidents in Turkey - January / June 2003
Incidents in Turkey - November 2000/December 2002
