Young I.E., who committed suicide after being raped by a Turkish soldier, was buried under heavy police presence. The 18-year-old woman has died after attempting suicide on 16 July in Besiri, Batman.
I.E, who was taken to the hospital the same day but could not be saved. According to reports, I.E stated in the letter she left behind that she had been raped.
The Turkish soldier accused of the rape, was detained upon the family’s complaint but was released under judicial control despite the Forensic Medicine report confirming the rape.
After the autopsy, I.E.’s body was delivered to the family around 3 am this morning. The coffin of I.E. was taken to Batman Asri Cemetery and buried under heavy police presence. The police did not allow anyone except the family to be in the cemetery.
People who wanted to attend the funeral reacted to the police who in turn attacked the crowd. HDP Siirt Deputy Sıdık Taş was also attacked.
18-year-old raped by Turkish officer dies
A Kurdish young woman was raped by a Turkish officer in Batman province. She attempted to commit suicide and was hospitalized. She has passed away at hospital today.
After being raped by a staff sergeant from the Turkish army, Kurdish young woman I.E. from Beşiri district of Batman tried to take her own life on 16 July.
The young woman was hospitalized on the same day and wrote a letter telling about her rape by an officer from the Turkish army. She has lost her life while receiving treatment.
The soldier in question was taken into custody upon a criminal complaint filed by the family. Despite a Forensic Medicine Institute report confirming the rape, the officer was released from custody after the military’s defence that he had been “drunk”.
The young women’s family has applied to the Batman branch of Human Rights Association (IHD). IHD then applied to Siirt Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, Ministry of National Defence and the Human Rights Commission of the Turkish Parliament, demanding to be provided with information on the incident.
Batman Democracy Platform: Rapists enjoy impunity
The suspected rapist of a 17-year-old girl from Batman was released after a brief arrest. The man is an officer in the Turkish army. The local democracy platform speaks of “concealment of the crime by top authorities”.
In the province of Batman there have been protests since yesterday against the release of the alleged rapist of a 17-year-old girl, a staff sergeant in the Turkish army. The Democracy Platform of Batman speaks of a cover-up of the crime by “high authorities”, as the rape of the girl, which took place on June 24, was established during an investigation by the forensic department. Nevertheless, Musa O., an avowed supporter of the right-wing extremist organization “Grey Wolves”, was not investigated at first, although the girl and her parents filed charges with the military police and public prosecutor’s office. Investigations were only started after the victim tried to shoot herself with a hunting rifle two days ago. However, it was not in Batman but in the neighbouring province of Siirt, as the crime is said to have taken place there after the minor was abducted from her village in Beşiri district. Less than 24 hours after his arrest, Musa O. was released because there was no danger of absconding, the judge said.
“It doesn’t matter where an act like this takes place. Whether in the Kurdish regions or in the West, we as the people of Batman cannot remain silent in view of what has been done to the victim. After all, the life of a young woman is at stake,” said Deniz Topkan, co-chairman of the provincial branch of the Health and Social Workers’ Union (SES), which is a component of the Democracy Platform, in a press release on Saturday.
Deniz Topkan
Besides Batman, other Kurdish regions are also affected by sexual violence against women and children by Turkish state officials. Last Tuesday, a Turkish staff sergeant also tried to abuse a thirteen-year-old girl in Şırnak. The act could be prevented, as the child’s neighbours became aware of it through calls for help. The man was disturbed and fled into his vehicle. A short time later he was confronted and overpowered by local residents. In the meantime he is in custody.
“The practice of impunity for crimes committed by state officials in the Kurdish areas of the country is a method that has always been used,” said Melek Atalay of the provincial coordination of the Chamber of Engineers and Architects (TMMOB). “In principle, we can speak of a culture of impunity that has been consolidated by the state. For this very reason, our struggle to ensure the implementation of the Istanbul Convention is a top priority,” she added.
Melek Atalay
For a long time, women’s organisations have been up in arms nationwide because the Turkish government is considering withdrawing from the Convention. The 2014 agreement is intended to curb violence against women, especially domestic violence, and to strengthen gender equality. Turkey was the first country to sign the convention and had it legally enshrined as a “law to prevent violence against women and protect the family”. A large part of the AKP and other Islamist structures are opposed to the convention, as it destroys traditional family structures and family cohesion and puts men in a corner. Atalay demands that the fight for the preservation of the treaty and its implementation be strengthened.
