WAN – Servet Ertak, the son of Mehmet Ertak, who was detained in Şirnex in 1992 and has not been heard from since, said: “Our pain is a reality of collective memory. If we are to speak of social peace in this country, the fate of the disappeared must first be revealed.”

 

Following the announcement by Minister of Justice Akın Gürlek that a “Department for the Investigation of Unsolved Murders” has been establishhed within the ministry, attention has once again turned to unsolved political killings and enforced disappearances carried out by state forces and paramilitary groups in the 1990s.

 

Relatives of Disappeared are demanding that the newly established department investigate not only ordinary criminal cases, but also the fate of all unresolved political murders.

 

One of those forcibly disappeared in the 1990s is Mehmet Ertak. He was detained in Şirnex (Şırnak) in 1992 and has not been heard from since. His son, Servet Ertak, said he was six years old at the time his father disappeared.

 

Recalling the period following the 1992 Newroz celebrations, he said that on 18 August Şirnex was subjected to destruction and burning, forcing many residents, including his own family, to leave the city. He stated that the city was placed under a three-day, three-night curfew and entry and exit were banned. His father then travelled in a civilian vehicle to check on his family.

 

Ertak described the events as follows: “At the checkpoint at the entrance of Şirnex, they were stopped by police in official uniforms and their identities were checked. After asking ‘Who is Mehmet Ertak?’, they took my father out of the vehicle and the others continued on their way. Later, an official police report emerged showing that my father had been taken into custody, and as a family we never heard from him again.”

 

‘IN THE ERTAK CASE, THE STATE WAS CAUGHT RED-HANDED’

 

Ertak said his grandfather, İsmail Ertak, filed applications with state institutions but was subjected to pressure and violence during these processes. He added that human rights defender Tahir Elçi, who was killed in 2015, later took up the case.

 

Saying he travelled to Istanbul to join the Saturday Mothers’ protests in search of his father and other disappeared relatives, Ertak stated: “When I attended the Saturday Mothers’ vigil, CHP (Republican People’s Party) MP Sezgin Tanrıkulu said the Mehmet Ertak file is one of the most important cases in terms of enforced disappearances in Turkey, because it is a case where the state was caught red-handed.”

 

‘THERE IS AN OFFICIAL DETENTION RECORD’

 

Ertak said there are confessions from JİTEM (Gendarmerie Intelligence and anti-terror Unit) members and that his father was detained on the orders of the then police chief and intelligence branch director. He added that Tahir Elçi had preserved an official document showing the detention in case of a risk of confiscation during his legal work on the case, and that it was later presented in proceedings before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

 

Ertak stated: “It was also confirmed by witnesses from that period that my father was detained and killed. According to Sezgin Tanrıkulu, there is also an official record from that time.”

 

Describing recent statements by the Minister of Justice as hopeful, Ertak said: “If there will be a reckoning with the past, if the state will fulfil its debt to its own people, these families should at least be able to search for their loved ones in safety. Many people are still afraid to ask about the fate of their relatives.”

 

He stressed that security concerns must be removed for those searching for the disappeared, noting that there are an estimated 17,000 unsolved political killings. “That means 17,000 families,” he said and added: “The public must approach these people with sensitivity. I know my father will not come back, but we must continue the struggle for justice. What happened to me should not happen to anyone else. Our pain is not individual; it is a reality of collective memory.”

 

‘THE FATE OF THE DISAPPEARED MUST FIRST BE REVEALED’

 

Stating that uncovering unsolved murders is one of the most important steps toward social peace, Ertak said that after 33 years, solidarity is needed to learn his father’s fate.

 

He concluded: “All of society must come together, shoulder to shoulder, to resolve this issue. If we are to speak of peace, the fate of the disappeared must first be revealed.”

 

MA / Lutfu Pala