“The murder of Deniz Poyraz is not an isolated case”

In Turkey and in many places in North Kurdistan, protests took place on Friday against the murder of Deniz Poyraz at the HDP headquarters in Izmir by a Turkish fascist apparently trained in Syria. In parallel, thousands of people attended the funeral in Izmir. In Istanbul, trade union and professional associations joined the HDP in issuing a public statement on the murder.

The rally in front of the Süreyya Opera House in Kadiköy was obstructed by police even before it began. Participants who wanted to walk united from the district association of the HDP to the rally site were blocked with barriers. The crowd persisted in front of the HDP headquarters and expressed their anger in slogans: “Deniz Poyraz is immortal”, “The HDP will not be silenced”, “Şehîd namirin – Martyrs are immortal”, “The murderers will give account before the people”. After about an hour and a half, Istanbul HDP co-chairs Elif Bulut and Erdal Avci made short statements.

Bulut: “We are not even allowed to feel anger and pain”

Elif Bulut protested against the police blockade and said, “People are not even allowed to feel anger and pain. We will never forget our companion Deniz and all other comrades killed. We promise them peace, justice, freedom and equality. None of their dreams will remain unfulfilled. Since this murder, people are on the streets all over Turkey. We will continue to fight to change the sinister and fascist order in this country.”

Avci: “Deniz was held hostage for half an hour”

Erdal Avci called the crime at the HDP headquarters in Izmir a political murder and said, “Many things have become clear in this massacre: The murderer entered the building in front of the security forces with a bag of weapons in his hand. About half an hour after the windows were broken, noise was heard and our friend Deniz was taken hostage, she was shot. For about half an hour, no one intervened against the perpetrator, who had previously been granted access. It was accepted that he would murder our friend. We say now: don’t protect us, stay away from us! These attacks are taking place because you have destroyed the unity and solidarity of this country. You are a plague to this country. You are guilty and you will pay for it. We will continue to fight against fascism. Deniz Poyraz has been martyred, martyrs do not die.”

“The murder of Deniz Poyraz is not an isolated incident”

Afterwards, the crowd went to the rally site in front of the Süreyya Opera House, where a joint statement of the participating organizations was read out, stressing that Deniz Poyraz’s murder was not an isolated case and the attack was an attempted massacre directed against the HDP.

“What has emboldened the perpetrators in this vile attack that has taken Deniz Poyraz from us is the climate of hostility installed in society by those in power. We are in solidarity with the HDP. We know that the culture of peace and brotherhood is deeply rooted in the society despite the provocations and attacks. We call on the whole society and all democratic forces to defend together the equal and free coexistence against the racist-fascist aggression against the HDP,” said the statement of the trade union federations KESK and DISK, the medical association TTB, the Chamber of Engineers and Architects TMMOB and the HDP in Istanbul.

After the reading of the statement, the police wanted to prevent the participants from leaving the rally site united. The crowd was driven into a side street, but nevertheless a demonstration procession could be formed, with which Deniz Poyraz was commemorated.

Poyraz family: expelled, arrested, murdered

The family originally came from the Omerya region in the Kurdish province of Mardin, where Deniz Poyraz was born in 1983. In 1990, when state persecution in the Kurdish regions reached its peak through torture, village burnings and systematic expulsion measures, the family left their village and settled in Izmir. Three of Fehime and Abdullah Poyraz’s sons are currently in Turkish prisons.