Ferit Şenyaşar, who has been elected as a Member of Parliament, after his father and two of his brothers were killed by relatives of Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) MP İbrahim Halil Yıldız prior to the country’s 2018 elections, has submitted his first written parliamentary question.
Şenyaşar asked the Justice Minister and the Interior Minister about the progress of the investigation and trial relating to the murdered members of his family.
Requesting a response from Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç, he asked, “As Justice Minister, are you considering taking any action to solve this long-standing injustice and to ensure justice in your new position?”
Şenyaşar also directed the following questions to the Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya:
“What is the reason for the inability to identify İbrahim Yıldız, who is one of the primary perpetrators and has had an arrest warrant out against him for five years, at the hospital to which he was admitted for treatment under his own identity?
“Has an administrative investigation been initiated against those responsible for the failure of the law enforcement force, which is charged with ensuring the safety of people’s lives and property? If initiated, what stage has it reached? If not initiated, what is the reason for not initiating it?”
The story so far
The incident unfolded during an election campaign visit to the Şenyaşar brothers at their family shop in Şanlıurfa (Riha) by relatives and bodyguards of the AKP MP. There was a confrontation in which Adil Şenyaşar tragically lost his life, while two other brothers sustained injuries and were hospitalised.
Upon hearing the news, the parents of the Şenyaşar brothers, Hacı Esvet and Emine Şenyaşar, rushed to the hospital. But Yıldız’s relatives arrived at the hospital and launched another attack on the Şenyaşar family. This second attack claimed the lives of Hacı Esvet and his son Celal, who had been wounded in the initial altercation.
Despite warrants issued for the Yıldız family members involved, only one person, Fadıl Şenyaşar, who was severely injured and undergoing treatment in the hospital, was arrested following the incident. Shockingly, none of the Yıldız family members were arrested until Enver Yıldız, a brother of the AKP MP and a named suspect, arrived at the court house in September 2019 with a team of 50 bodyguards, and turned himself in.
In April 2021, Fadıl Şenyaşar, who had lost three family members and had been in custody since the day of the incident, was sentenced to 37 years and 9 months. Meanwhile, Enver Yıldız received an 18-year sentence. The handling of the case has been marked by allegations of government interference and lack of progress, despite the existence of CCTV footage from the shop and numerous calls for a thorough investigation.
Emine Şenyaşar and her son Ferit have been staging a daily vigil outside the Şanlıurfa Courthouse in response to this ongoing injustice.
The case remains a significant issue in the fight for Kurdish rights and justice in Turkey.
