Eren Keskin
In our geography, throughout the history of the Republic of Turkey, many political parties have been shut down by the courts. The usual reason for closing these parties was their political ideas. They were banned because they held views different from the official state ideology. Most of these parties were political parties formed by the Kurdish civilian political movement.
However, despite producing violence, one party has remained untouched to this day. The political line embodied today by the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) has always maintained its presence throughout the history of the Republic. Perhaps it has not been targeted so far because it has carried out the duties of the secret organisation Teşkilat-ı Mahsusa of the Committee of Union and Progress. Nevertheless, for a long time, MHP and its affiliated group, the Grey Wolves, have been at the centre of violence in this geography. They committed numerous murders, none of which were ever investigated.
Today, once again, this political tradition is being debated due to a murder. This time, the murder was committed against someone from within their own political sphere. Sinan Ateş, who was at the heart of the Grey Wolves, was assassinated by a political force, and this issue is now being discussed in many parts of the geography. The case file contains very clear evidence. Despite the investigative authorities’ attempts to obscure and withhold much of the evidence, the murder is blatantly evident from the uncovered facts.
Without understanding the long-standing mentality of “Shoot the one who abandons the cause,” it is impossible to discuss the murder of Sinan Ateş. It appears that Sinan Ateş had diverged from the MHP and the Grey Wolves in terms of his political ideas, and seeing him as a threat, they eliminated him. The strange and unacceptable situation, especially in a democracy, is precisely this.
Despite the extensive debate, politicians affiliated with MHP and the Grey Wolves continue to openly threaten anyone who is not aligned with them, doing so freely and with a sense of impunity. When someone else uses language that incites violence, investigations are immediately launched, yet no such investigation is initiated against these individuals. They continue their threats with a great sense of security and the belief that they are protected.
The murder of Sinan Ateş is indeed being discussed, but the murder of Deniz Poyraz has not been discussed by anyone in this geography. Deniz Poyraz was murdered exactly three years ago, on 17 June 2021, in the HDP building in Izmir by a fascist killer named Onur Gencer. Onur Gencer was quickly apprehended. As the lawyers familiar with all stages of the case, we know that this crime was an organised one. Onur Gencer did not act alone; there was a structure behind him.
Unfortunately, the prosecution, which should have investigated this structure, deemed one day sufficient for Onur Gencer. He was detained for just one day, arrested, and placed in prison without conducting any thorough investigation of the evidence. The investigative authority ignored all requests from the lawyers and failed to gather sufficient evidence. They hastily concluded the investigation and opened the case, seemingly to obscure the organization behind Onur Gencer.
Throughout the trial, as lawyers, we repeatedly emphasized the need to uncover the power behind Onur Gencer, stressing that without revealing this power, the true perpetrator of this murder would not be identified. However, the court did not accept any of our requests and swiftly sentenced Onur Gencer as if it were a simple criminal case, ignoring the political dimensions of the murder, and closed the case.
If the case of Deniz Poyraz had been discussed as widely as Sinan Ateş’s case, perhaps the truth would have surfaced sooner, and action could have been taken against this structure. But could this have happened? Certainly not, we know this. This is a political structure always protected by the hidden power of the state, a structure always intended to exist.
I always define the struggle for human rights as a debt we owe to our dead. These are the dead whose perpetrators have, unfortunately, never been brought to justice. Many are buried without a grave. True, Deniz Poyraz has a grave where her family can go to pray, but have the real killers of Deniz Poyraz been caught? No. Have those who instructed Onur Gencer, provided him with weapons, or even assisted him in staying at luxury hotels before the murder, despite being a government official, been tried? No.
Will this cycle continue like this? Unfortunately, it will. Because in this geography, true dissenters, who can genuinely be identified as opposing the state’s imposed political ideologies, comprise only about 15%. Others who identify as dissenters have shaped themselves within certain political frameworks imposed by the state. As long as they do not step outside this framework and engage in genuine questioning, this cycle will indeed continue. Should we despair then? Certainly not.
This cycle will continue for a while longer. However, slowly but surely, the truths are emerging. Especially with the recent murder of Sinan Ateş, even segments that unquestioningly accepted the status quo in many regions of this geography are now beginning to discuss and question it. As human rights defenders, we will continue to stand against and challenge a system where violence has become so central.
Eren Keskin is a prominent lawyer and human rights activist known for her tireless advocacy for justice and equality. Keskin has dedicated her life to defending the rights of marginalised and oppressed communities in Turkey. As co-founder of the Istanbul branch of the Human Rights Association (İHD), she has been at the forefront of efforts to expose human rights abuses and advocate for victims of state violence, particularly focusing on issues affecting women and the Kurdish communities. Keskin has received numerous international awards, including the 2018 Theodor Haecker Prize for Civic Courage and Political Integrity, in recognition of her courage in the face of adversity. Follow her on Twitter.
