Families’ March of Justice Continues
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The families of Soma mine workers continue their march for justice which has started after the court's decision as "rewarding the murderers". Following their justice meeting in Çanakkale and the press statement in Silivri, families attended the Abbasağa Forum that is held in Beşiktaş on the 13th of July. Along with the families, representatives from various organizations and parties including HDP deputy Oya Ersoy, Gülsüm Elvan, the mother of Berkin Elvan who was murdered by police during the Gezi uprising in 2013, and " Saturday mothers ", who have been searching justice for 23 years, held speeches. The next morning after the Abbasağa Forum, families moved to Tuzla to meet with the dockyard workers.  

 

 

On his speech in the Forum, the mother Gülsüm Çolak made a call for their final meeting which will be at the Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) in Ankara and stated that “We, the women, will take the justice by getting united. Are you in to meet with me in Ankara?”


In her speech, Gülsüm Elvan emphasized the importance of the united struggle, saying “In one of the courts, the prosecutor said “don’t go out streets that much” to us. We replied them that we will be in streets until the justice will be served. I will be out in the streets everyday until the murdered of my son will be found. We’ll not stop but struggle to the end. We will win, if we unite together. We must unite together.”

 

The HDP deputy Oya Ersoy emphasized the role of AKP government in the Soma massacre and stated that “ The responsible of this massacre is the AKP rulership, which has established an order for much more production, much more profit but also much more cheap workforce. It is the AKP-capital alliance itself. ”

 

 

 

The next day after the Abbasağa Forum, on the 14th of July, families moved to the Tuzla dockyard area in order to meet with the dockyard workers, who have been giving a struggle against the work murders for many years. There, the families are welcomed by the Limter-İş (union of docyard workers) and HDP Tuzla organization.


On the statement, the representative of Limter-İş, Kamber Saygılı said: “ The families of Soma are trying to rise their voice against this injustice. We, as the Limter İş union and the dockyard workers are with the families in their struggle of justice. The justice march is the march of the workers and the oppressed. It is a march of conscious.”


On behalf of the families, İsmail Çolak, who lost his son Uğur Çolak in the massacre, emhasized Turkey’s record of work murders and continued : “ We all know that if justice had been achieved in our case, then all workers would have been the winners of it. We have been saying everywhere that, if we loose, then each mines, worksites, dockyard of the country would be open for new massacres like Soma… I used to be a mine worker, I know how the underground is. But you, you know the surface. For a worker, under the ground or the above is same. We are pushed to work like slaves in uncontrolled and unhealthy conditions. We must say stop to this order of death and come side by side. A country of justice will be created by those whose sweat flows into their labor. Yes, we are going to Ankara, in order to bring the justice, which does not exist in this country, out to the surface”