A black mark on Turkey; Maraş Massacre

MARAŞ | 19-12-2013 | According to official numbers, 111 people, mostly Alevis, were massacred savagely in the Maras Massacre from 19 to 25 December 1978. The witnesses of the massacre can not forget the agony of massacre despite 35 years passing over it. Thousands of Alevis were wounded during the incidents, over 111 people were massacred, more than 552 houses and some 289 shops were destroyed. The witnesses of the massacre say, “We witnessed babies being beheaded in their swaddles, how can we forget this?”

The massacre of Kahramanmaraş started with a bomb thrown into a movie house. Rumors spread that left-wingers had thrown the bomb. The next day, another bomb was thrown into a coffee-shop frequently visited by left-wing circles. In the evening of 21 December 1978, teachers Hacı Çolak and Mustafa Yüzbaşıoğlu were killed on their way home. They were known as left-wingers. While a crowd of some 5,000 people prepared for the funeral, right-wing groups stirred up emotions saying that “the communists are going to bomb the mosque, and will massacre our Muslim brothers”.

On 23 December 1978, the incidents turned into a mass phenomenon. Groups stormed the neighborhoods where Alevis were living, destroyed their houses and shops. Many offices, including that of Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions of Turkey (DİSK) and Teachers’ Association of Turkey (TÖB-DER) were destroyed.

The court cases, opened at military courts, lasted until 1991. A total of 804 defendants, mostly right-wingers, were put on trial. The courts passed 29 death penalties and sentenced seven defendants to life imprisonment and 321 people to sentences between one and 24 years of imprisonment. The Court of Cassation quashed the sentences and because of legal amendments all defendants were released in 1991.

A secret document revealed that the secret service (MİT) had planned the incidents. (ANF)