MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

Amed- On December 2, 2015, a 24-hour curfew was declared in the Sur district of Amed (Diyarbakır). The curfew lasted more than three months. 24 civilians, including women and children, were killed during the curfew imposed in four neighborhoods of Sur district. After the lifting of the curfew, former Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu claimed they would “rebuild Sur so that it's like Toledo: everyone will want to come and appreciate its architectural texture.” But after six years, the history and memory of Sur were totally destroyed by ladles. Only several historical mosques and houses waiting for being restored remain standing in Sur.

On September 6, 2015, the first curfew was declared in the 15 neighborhoods preventing people from leaving their homes even to buy essential food or medical supplies. Then, five more curfews were declared in the district until November 30. The fifth curfew was declared in six neighborhoods on December 2, 2015. The curfew lasted three months. Six years have passed since the lifting of the curfew but the curfew has been still imposed in four neighborhoods; asırlı, Cemal Yılmaz, Savaş, and Fatihpaşa neighborhoods. During the world's longest curfew, hundreds of thousands of people were forced to leave their homes, and hundreds of people, including civilians, were killed.

Clashes in six neighborhoods lasted 103 days

The clashes broke out in the Cevatpaşa, Fatihpaşa, Dabanoğlu, Hasırlı, Cemal Yılmaz and Savaş neigborhoods lasted 103 days. On March 9, 2016, Efkan Ala, former Minister of the Interior, announced the lifting of the curfew in the district. According to official figures, 71 people, including 53 soldiers, 17 police officers, and one village guard, lost their lives and 523 people, including 392 soldiers, 128 police, and three village guards were injured during the curfew. During the clashes in the areas under curfew, a “Life corridor” was formed with the initiative of non-governmental organizations to evacuate the civilians from the district, and 40 people were evacuated. 40 evacuated people were detained and 32 of them were sent to prison.

The bodies of 73 people, including YPS and YPS-JIN members, were found in the district. According to the report of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT), 24 of 73 people were civilians. Fatma Ateş, Helin Şen Hasret and Melek Alpaydın were some of them. 12-year-old Helin Şen Hasret lost her life on Oct. 12, 2015, as a result of fire that opened from an armored cobra vehicle in the district while going to buy bread.

3,569 buildings were destroyed

Turkish military went into the district with tanks, urban assault vehicles, and waves of troops. Many historical buildings, including Kurşunlu Mosque, Hacı Hamit Mosque, Paşa Hamam, Mehmet Uzun House, Armenian Catholic Church, Four-Legged Minaret, Saint Mary Church, and Dengbej House, were severely damaged in the operation. After the end of the operations, the traces of the clashes were tried to be erased in the district by ladles. Human parts and bones buried in the ground were unearthed during the excavations carried out in the district, where severe rights violations were experienced. According to the report of the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects (UCTEA), 3,569 buildings were totally destroyed in the district.

Social and demographic structure of the district has changed

After the clashes, “Urgent Expropriation” was declared in the Sur district by a cabinet decision, and the construction of new houses was begun in 2017. Police stations were built and cameras were installed in all neighborhoods. The cases of prostitution, drugs, and theft have increased in the district.

“National and international conventions were not implemented”

Stressing the violations of rights and unlawfulness in that period, Gulan Çağın Kaleli, one of the lawyers of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT), told us 11 children lost their lives in the district between August 2015-2016. “We saw that people lost their lives at that time while sitting at their homes and at the table or buying bread. The rights of women and children should have been protected by national and international conventions. However, these conventions were not implemented,” she told us.

“People were deprived of many rights”

Emphasizing that there were practices against the bodies and life rights of civilians during the curfews, Gulan Çağın Kaleli, pointed out that the official institutions defined the killing of civilians as a “fight against terrorism”.

“At that time, a mother lost her life and her four children were injured by a piece of shell hit their house in Sur. A child lost her life as a result of a fire opened from an armored cobra vehicle. The official institutions defined the attacks against children as a ‘fight against terrorism. We saw that the people’s right to access health was blocked. Many schools and hospitals were used as military headquarters. The people, who denied leaving their houses, were attacked.”

“Women suffered from trauma”

Emphasizing that the process was a trauma for women, Gulan Çağın Kaleli said that women were suddenly forced to leave their houses. “Many pregnant women lost their children or gave birth early because they were blocked to access health services. Many women suffered from trauma. The citizens, who didn’t leave their homes, are recently stuck between drugs and prostitution. We can say that Sur is the heart of Diyarbakır. Families in Sur were forced to leave their houses twice. The historical and political identity of Sur has been changed.”