ISTANBUL, Turkey — Saturday Mothers gathered for 327th times in Istanbul to commemorate the forcibly disappeared people of Turkey and ask the government to find those responsible and bring them before court.
The meeting in front of Galatasaray High School was more crowded than usual because of the 18th anniversary of the Madimak Massacre in Sivas.
The meeting was dedicated to Hasan Ocak’s father Hıdır Ocak, who lost his life last year and victims of the Madımak Massacre. Father Ocak had devoted his life to the Saturday Mothers’ action after his son Hasan Ocak was killed by police.
Zeynep Altıok, daughter of Metin Altıok who was burnt to death in Madımak Massacre on July 2, 1993 in Sivas; Arat Dink, son of Hrant Dink, who was killed by deep-state force on January 19, 2007 in İstanbul; Ozge Mumcu, son of journalist, Ugur Mumcu who was murdered by bomb in his car on January 24, 1993 in Ankara; and writers, actress and producers attended in the meeting.
Altıok read a poem about the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo ‘Mothers with white scurf’ written by Behçet Aysan, who was also burnt to death during the Madımak Massacre and added the massage send by Eren Aysan, daughter of poet Behçet Aysan another victim in the massacre.
In addition, there was another Saturday Mothers (in Kurdish Dayikên Şemiyê) in Cizre, a district of Sirnak, gathered 23rd times. The Mothers in Cizre dedicate the meeting to Ömer Güven, who was shot and burnt by soldiers in 1992 on his way from Cizre to Şırnak.