At their 1065th vigil against “disappearances” in state custody, the Initiative of the Saturday Mothers demanded clarification of the fate of Mehmet Ertak. The man from Şırnak was abducted by Turkish police 33 years ago and tortured to death. His body has never been found.
Human rights activist Maside Ocak presented the case: Mehmet Ertak was 32 years old when he disappeared. The father of four children was a miner and lived with his family in the Rezuk hamlet. Before his disappearance, he had been arrested twice and severely tortured. On August 18, 1992, the car in which he was traveling with three colleagues and relatives was stopped at an official checkpoint. After his identity was checked, he was arrested by uniformed police officers and taken to the police headquarters in Şırnak and his arrest was recorded there. When his relatives asked about him, his arrest was denied. Later, six witnesses testified that they had seen Ertak being severely tortured in police custody.
After several unsuccessful attempts by relatives to clarify the whereabouts of Mehmet Ertak, the statements of JITEM (Military Secret Service) employee Murat Ipek were published in 1997. The Secret Service agent responsible for torture interrogations stated: “We killed and buried Mehmet Ertak on the orders of Necati Altuntaş, the police chief of Şırnak, and Mehmet Kaplan, the head of the anti-terrorism unit. All executions were carried out with the knowledge of Ünal Erkan, the then governor of the province, under a state of emergency.”
Nevertheless, the case was dismissed by the Turkish Court of Cassation. Human rights lawyer Tahir Elçi, who was shot dead by a police officer during a press conference in the old town of Amed (Tr: Diyarbakır) in November 2015, took the case of Mehmet Ertak to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to demand punishment for the perpetrators. As a result, his law office was raided by the police. The Ertak file was confiscated and the lawyer was mistreated. Elçi did not back down – and the ECHR found it proven that Mehmet Ertak had been arrested and tortured to death. Turkey was convicted of violating the right to life.
After presenting the case, Maside Ocak said: “It is the duty of this state to face the reality that people like Mehmet Ertak were forcibly disappeared while in its ‘care.’” Ankara must finally put an end to impunity and ensure that those responsible are brought to justice because murder has no statute of limitations.” Ocak also reiterated the demand of the relatives and the Saturday Mothers that the location where Ertak’s body was buried be disclosed. “His relatives want a grave where they can say goodbye with dignity,” she added.
Source: ANF News
