Court arrests confessor in Narin Güran murder case

Nevzat Bahtiyar, the man who confessed to the murder of Narin Güran, 8, in Diyarbakır, has been remanded in custody.

Bahtiyar, who yesterday admitted to the security forces that he had disposed of the child’s body in a sack in a stream in exchange for money, was brought to the Diyarbakır Courthouse today.

His testimony to the prosecutor’s office lasted five hours. Subsequently, Bahtiyar was brought before the Penal Judgeship of Peace, facing a request for his arrest on the grave charge of “intentionally killing a child or a person unable to defend himself.” Subsequently, the judge ordered his arrest for participating in the murder.

Narin Güran’s uncle Salim Güran, who was also the headman of the family’s village, was remanded in custoy on Sep 2. yesterday, he was dismissed as the headman. Procedings regarding 23 other individuals detained in connection with the case, , including the child’s parents and siblings, are underway.

Narin Güran went missing on Aug 21 in Diyarbakır’s Tavşantepe village, where she lived with her family. Authorities launched an investigation, resulting in the arrest of her uncle, Salim Güran, on Sep 2.

On Sep 8, Governor Murat Zorluoğlu confirmed Narin’s body was found near Eğertutmaz Creek close to her village. Her remains were hidden in a sack, weighed down by stones, giving it a natural appearance.

The investigation has led to the detention of 24 individuals, including Narin’s parents, siblings, and uncles.

Nevzat Bahtiyar, who is unrelated to the family, confessed to disposing of Narin’s body at the request of her uncle, Salim Güran, who allegedly offered him 200,000 lira to “get rid of it.” Narin’s funeral took place on Sep 9, where she was laid to rest in the Tavşantepe village cemetery.

Mourning tent

Meanwhile, a mourning tent was set up in Diyarbakır for Narin Güran, led by women’s groups. However, the police initially prevented the tent from being erected. The tent, which was blocked by law enforcement at Koşuyolu Park with the justification that they couldn’t protect attendees from potential armed attackers, was eventually allowed after the arrival of Diyarbakır co-mayors.

During the negotiations, law enforcement reportedly told the women who wanted to set up the mourning tent, “Even if you set up a mourning house here for hours and armed people come, how will we protect you here? Make your press statement and go.” Threatening messages regarding the mourning tent had been shared on social media the day before.

‘Future of all children’

MP Adalet Kaya from the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party criticized the law enforcement’s obstruction of the mourning tent:

“When we talk about Narin, we are essentially talking about the future of all children who exist and live. No other child should be subjected to such horrific violence and a terrible death like Narin. We must ensure this, we must create safe spaces for them. Today, we are here at Koşuyolu Park. We wanted to come together in a space where we commemorated children killed by state violence, sat silently, shared our pain, or expressed our anger.

“There are women who want to come from the neighborhoods. But unfortunately, they are being prevented by law enforcement. Today, even people sharing their feelings here is being prevented by law enforcement and the governor’s office. This is unbelievable. At least let people express their pain, anger, and feelings democratically. Don’t put obstacles in front of this either. Because the issue now goes beyond Narin. It represents a situation, an understanding that defines the violence children experience in Turkey.

“Because the judiciary’s impunity policies, especially in crimes against children, unfortunately, embolden families and men. A societal will is needed to prevent this. We absolutely do not accept law enforcement’s obstruction of the will that is sought to be realized here today. We will sit here. We will express our condolences, our pain, and our anger.” (ED/VK)