HDP supporter Tayip Temel requested the establishment of a parliamentary investigation commission to investigate the armed attack by soldiers and village guards on a minibus carrying refugees in Van.
Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair and Van Deputy Tayip Temel submitted a parliamentary inquiry regarding the armed attack by soldiers and village guards on a minibus carrying refugees on July 3 in the Saray district of Van. In the justification of the proposal, it was noted that the war policies of the AKP-MHP government made millions of people refugees. Emphasizing that the refugees who crossed the borders and reached Turkey became the target of multi-faceted violence due to the raging of racist and hate speeches, the reasoning said, “Refugees who were displaced, especially on the Turkey-Iran border, froze to death, and lost their lives in accidents in the vehicles they were stuffed with. Today, however, refugees are also being killed and injured by ‘bouncing bullets’, the vehicles on which they ride are scanned without hesitation,” it said.
‘The delegation could not meet with the gendarmerie command’
Reminding that the vehicle carrying refugees in Van’s Saray district was fired upon by soldiers and guards, the justification said, “A 4-year-old boy in the vehicle was killed and many people were injured. Regarding the incident in question, ÖHD Van Branch, İHD Van Branch, Van KESK Children’s Rights Commission, Serhat Göç-der formed a committee to conduct research, examination, observations and determinations on the subject. The delegation provided interviews with the villagers who witnessed the event. However, the delegation’s requests to meet with the Gendarmerie Station Command in the village where the incident took place and the incident in the hospital where they were treated with the injured immigrants were not accepted.
Decisions of the delegation
In the proposal, the determinations made as a result of the examination carried out by the committee were listed as follows in the justification:
“* From the testimonies of witnesses, the photographs and video recordings taken during the incident, it was understood that those who committed the crime of migrant smuggling and the law enforcement that carried out the road control in the middle of the village and in front of the school were responsible and defective.
*Contrary to the statement of the Van Governor’s Office, there were no deaths or injuries due to the rebounding bullet, but deaths and injuries occurred due to the targeting of the vehicle and the continued fire despite the immigrants getting out of the vehicle.
*It has been understood that the vehicle mentioned in the incident was not fired only at its wheels, but there were bullet holes in the upper and lower glass parts of the vehicle, even the fuel tank of the vehicle was damaged, and the fuel was spilled on the scene.
‘Establish a research commission’
In the report submitted by the delegation, it was noted that the statement of the witnesses confirms that the state’s law enforcement officers killed a child and injured 12 people. I propose the establishment of a research commission in order to prevent the cover-up of this and similar incidents.
Serhat News
Translator :Akif Coşkun
