ISTANBUL – Youth organizations are preparing to commemorate those who lost their lives in te Pirsûs (Suruc) Massacre through various events. Socialist Youth Association Federation (SGDF) Co-chair Berfin Polat said, “We can only acieve justice if we come together on a united front.”

 

The 10th anniversary of the massacre that occurred on July 20, 2015, in the Pirsûs district of Riha (Urfa), when ISIS carried out a bomb attack, is approaching. Youth organizations continue their efforts under the slogan “On the 10th anniversary, youth rise following the path of Suruc” to commemorate the victims. 

 

Series of events will be held as part of the campaign. The Suruç Families Initiative will organize a memorial night on July 17 at 19.30 pm local time at Labella Event Hall in Okmeydani, Istanbul. 

 

On July 20, cemetery visits will take place at 11.50 am local time, the time of the attack. On the same day at 18.00 pm local time, a commemoration will be held on Halitaga Street in Kadikoy, followed by an event at Sirri Sureyya Opera House at 19.00 pm local time. 

 

Recalling the purpose of the journey to Kobanê (Kobani) ten years ago, SGDF Co-chair Berfin Polat emphasized that the state aimed not only at physical destruction with the massacre, but also at launching new era through its “Collapse Plan.” 

 

She said: “There was an intent to bring together the children of Gezi and the children of Kobani – to be the seed of a united revolution. This massacre aimed to destroy that dream. The state told the youth, all social groups, and socialists they cannot dream, tey cannot meet with revolution. This message was reinfoced by ongoing injustice. Immediately after the massacre, a confidentiality order was issued, evidence was tampered with, defendants’ seats remained empty in court, and there was a reality where lawyers, families, and justice seekers were the ones presenting evidence to the courts and amplifying the call for justice in the streets."

 

She added: "Our families are being prosecuted for calling the murderer a murderer; our families, the wounded, and those demanding justice for Suruç are arrested, detained, and tortured every year. Meanwhile, ISIS members wanted on red notices receive treatment in Turkish state hospitals. These facts are being concealed, and the perpetrators are not prosecuted. At the time, it was said, ‘We have intelligence about a suicide bomber, but we can’t intervene until they detonate themselves.’ This proves that the massacre was not solely carried out by ISIS.”

 

‘JUSTICE FOR SURUC IS JUSTICE FOR ALL’

 

Berfin Polat reminded that the youth movement interpreted this massacre as one directly targeting them and launched a justice campaign under the slogan “Justice for Suruc, justice for all.”  Berfin Polat said as approaching the 10th anniversary they see “memory as the most crucial point” and added: “A massacre took place, the perpetrators still have not been brought to justice, and this atrocity is being forgotten. It’s not just the murder of 33 dream travelers that is being erased, but also the united struggle and revolution of the peoples of Turkey and Kurdistan. We assert that those ideals and dreams are still alive today.”

 

Berfin Polat concluded by emphasizing that a broad segment of society is in pursuit of justice: “There is so much injustice in this land that we believe justice can only be achieved if we come together on a united front. We call on all women, youth, and justice seekers to shoulder the struggle for justice together.”

 

MA / Yesim Tukel