We commemorate those who have lost their lives in this massacre and extend our condolences to the families of the deceased and to all those who advocate for labour, democracy and peace; we wish a quick recovery to the injured.
On 10th October 2015, KESK (Confederation of Public Workers’ Unions), DİSK (Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions of Turkey), TTB (Turkish Medical Association) and TMMOB (Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects) have called upon numerous NGOs, civil society organisations, political parties and citizens to join in the rally for Labour, Democracy and Peace. The organisation committee for the rally applied to the Ankara Governorship, obtained the necessary permissions and informed the governorship of how the demonstration would be held. Accordingly, the demonstrators from Ankara and other cities would gather in front of the Ankara central train station and participate in a procession towards Sıhhiye Square at 10:00 o’clock. The rally would start once all demonstrators reached Sıhhiye Square.
The organisation committee was given no information whatsoever by the Security Forces of an imminent threat of an attack by 10:00 a.m., which was the time the demonstrators would gather in front of the Ankara train station to start the procession.
As the Human Rights Association Headquarters, we had announced that we would participate in the rally and informed our branches asking for their participation. As a result, there were numerous members and executives of the HRA present in the demonstration.
Approximately ten minutes after the demonstrators started the procession in front of the train station (10:10 o’clock), two separate bombs were detonated along a single line with a distance of approximately 50-60 metres between them and a time interval of 3 seconds. Eyewitnesses have stated that both blasts occurred in the middle of the crowd and that neither of the bombs was attached to any fixed structure. Eyewitnesses have also stated that the blasts were caused by two suicide bombers.
Immediately after the blasts, health workers at the scene, who are members of the TTB and SES (Union of Public Employees in Health and Social Services), offered emergency medical intervention and the injured were referred to hospitals. A few ambulances arrived at the scene within 15-20 minutes. A large majority of the injured were carried to hospitals in private vehicles.
The demonstrators who lost their lives as a result of the two blasts were left at the scene of the incident since they had been confirmed to have died by the survivors of the incident, the health workers present and the ambulance staff who later arrived. The deceased were covered with the cloth banners that were planned to be used during the rally. As medical intervention was being offered to the injured, a crowd of riot police approaching from the direction of Sıhhiye intervened with tear gas and pressurized water thereby preventing the health workers from delivering first aid. The group of people trying to move away from the scene were attacked with truncheons by the police positioned along the street, giving rise to commotion. The scene of the crime was surrounded and contained by the surviving demonstrators themselves who stood along the lines and refused to leave their friends who were lying on the ground.
At the time when more ambulances started to arrive at the scene (around 10:30), a group of riot police approaching from the direction of Tandoğan ran towards the area where the bodies were lying and delayed the arrival of the ambulances by blocking the only road that allowed access to the scene. The demonstrators reacted and had the police move back and ensured that the road was opened to access.
Approximately one hour after the injured were evacuated from the scene, the acting Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor with jurisdiction arrived at the scene together with teams of crime scene investigators. The crime scene teams cordoned off a wide area where body parts were spread and asked the waiting demonstrators to stand outside the cordoned area. The riot police, who arrived at the scene were protested against by the demonstrators and sent to an area farther away from the scene.
The executives of KESK, DİK, TTB, TMMOB and the representatives of HRA (Human Rights Association), ÇHD (Progressive Lawyers Association), ÖHD (Association of Lawyers for Freedom) and TİHV (The Human Rights Foundation of Turkey), who were present during the events, spoke with the acting Chief Public Prosecutor and the police authorities and requested to accompany them in the crime scene investigation. Within the knowledge of the acting Chief Public Prosecutor with jurisdiction, the crime scene investigation teams were thus accompanied by forensic medicine expert Prof. Dr. Şebnem Korur Fincancı and Dr. Ümit Biçer and 8 lawyers. These individuals contributed to facilitating the work at the scene of the incident. The lawyers accompanying the officials video-recorded the entire scene, took the necessary photographs and filled in the protocols.
As the crime scene investigation was being performed, it was understood from the statements of various eyewitnesses that intelligence had been communicated in the morning hours to the military guest-houses and that the guests were not allowed to enter the military guest-houses. It was also understood from talks with the police at the scene that there had been general intelligence and that various operations had been conducted in the morning hours. According to the information from those gathered at the scene, no security measures had been taken whatsoever in or around the area of the rally and the traffic had continued to flow until the procession started.
As a result of the crime scene investigation, the bodies of 41 people who lost their lives as a result of the blast occurring in the front of the street and the bodies of 28 people killed as a result of the blast occurring towards the back of the street where the Ankara train station is located -a total of 69 bodies- were transferred to the morgue of the Forensic Medicine Institution and the Gazi University Hospital. It was stated that three of the bodies were dismembered limbs and consisted only of legs.
As the crime scene investigation was ongoing, it was found out from the Chief Public Prosecutor himself that many of the people admitted to the hospital were critically wounded and that 17 people had died on the way or immediately after they had been admitted to the hospital. In view of the number of wounded people being treated at the hospitals, we estimate that there may be more than a hundred deaths.
The information given by the expert police as the crime scene investigation was continuing show that there are similarities to the blast that occurred in Suruç in terms of the way the bomb was detonated and its mechanism. Indeed, during the investigation along the street, it was observed that the ground on which the blasts took place had not been destroyed and that the device had been detonated approximately one meter above the ground, attached to a body.
The demonstrators who showed reactions at the time the crime scene investigation started were scared off and driven away by the police who fired their guns into the air on the side of the street towards the Arena Sports Hall. The demonstrators reacted against the police with chants.
As the crime scene investigation was continuing, the Ministers of Interior, Health and Justice arrived, escorted by numerous police officers, and attempted to approach the crime scene investigation teams. However the ministers were met with intense reactions from the demonstrators and quickly departed. The fact that three ministers escorted my numerous police officers tried to enter the scene carelessly with no regard to the body pieces, while even the lawyers had such difficulty obtaining permission, caused reactions among the people.
After all the bodies were removed, two lawyers accompanied the officials to identify and collect any remaining pieces of tissue.
The HRA Headquarters has prepared lists based on the information they received and has tried to identify the deceased, the wounded and those persons who are unaccounted for. The same activity was also undertaken by the TTB, SES and the Headquarters of the HDP, which has lost many of its members.
The representatives of the organisations which organised the rally, representatives of professional labour organisations and other organisations and political parties gathered at the KESK headquarters at 20:00 on the same day to hold a meeting about how the funerals and burials would take place. According to the decision taken at this meeting, the bodies on which the autopsies had been completed would be sent to their hometowns with the consent of the families and would be received collectively and buried in these cities. It was also decided that carnations would be placed in front of the Ankara train station on 11 October 2015, Sunday at 10:00 a.m. in memory of those who had lost their lives and a memorial would be held in Sıhhiye for the other funerals after their autopsies had been completed.
The HRA headquarters and a number of other organisations and KESK in particular were kept open on the day and night of the event.
In the morning hours of 11 October 2015, the president of the HRA and the president of KESK called the Ankara Directorate of Security with the aim to inform them about the memorial to be held for those who lost their lives and to ask them not to prevent the gathering. However, the Governor of Ankara and the Ankara Director of Security failed to meet their most humanitarian responsibility in the face of greatest attack in the history of Turkey and continued their insensitivity by failing to call the presidents of the labour professionals organisations or the presidents of other organisations on 10 October or on the morning of 11 October.
On Sunday morning, at around 10:00 o’clock, the area in front of the Ankara train station was surrounded by the police in all three directions with the excuse that there was an ongoing crime scene investigation. It was observed visually that the crime scene investigation had been completed, that the area had been washed and cleaned and that no further investigation was being undertaken at the time. The Ankara police did not allow the representatives of the organisations to approach the area and intervened to disperse the representatives and demonstrators gathered on the street extending from Ulus to the Atatürk sports hall by using tear gas and plastic bullets. Similarly, the representatives and demonstrators who wished to reach the train station from the direction of Tandoğan were prevented from doing so. However, due to the reactions of the group gathered in front of the 19th May stadium and after it was notified that the Prime Minister had granted permission, a short memorial was held in front of the train station.
Representatives of organisations and demonstrators who were prevented from holding a memorial then walked to Sıhhiye Square. When the number of the demonstrators reached several thousand, the street was virtually closed to traffic. The police blocked the street in the direction of Kızılay with anti-riot vehicles.
The funerals of six people whose autopsies had been completed were being transported towards Sıhhiye Square in funeral cars. However the police did not allow the funerals to move on from Ulus to Sıhhiye. The representatives of organisations and the demonstrators then condemned the massacre and held a memorial for their friends. After the speeches, the necessary information was given about the burial ceremonies.
The HRA delegation visited the Forensic Medicine Institution to observe the activities on site. It was observed that the Forensic Medicine Institution had six autopsy tables, the autopsies were carried out in approximately an hour and a half and that there were many who were kept waiting as a result. Furthermore, it was understood that a decision had ben taken to transfer the bodies at hospitals to the Forensic Medicine Institution for autopsy, which caused delays. As of the afternoon hours of 11 October, it was observed that a total of 51 autopsies were performed and that the autopsy procedures would continue for several more days.
CONCLUSION:
The right to life and the right to peaceful assembly were severely violated during the ‘Ankara Labour Democracy and Peace Rally on 10 October 2015’. According to the ECtHR, States have two kinds of obligations, namely negative and positive obligations. The negative obligation of the state is to refrain from violating rights. Its positive obligation is to take measures and protect the people. The State has failed to perform its obligation to prevent the grave violation of the right to life. Even if the blasts leading to the death of more than 100 people were not caused by public officials (the military, police) or persons affiliated to the security and intelligence units of the State, the State nevertheless has a positive obligation to meet. The State has failed to adopt the intelligence measures that it should have adopted. Even if the state has obtained intelligence and notified the units responsible for prevention, these units have failed to perform their duties. Similarly, even though it was known days ago that thousands of people from across Turkey would travel to Ankara and gather at the Ankara train station to start a procession at 10:00 o’clock, the state has taken no measures whatsoever in the area where people would gather and start the procession (in front of the train station and along the roads leading to the train station). Similar violations occurred during the public meeting in Diyarbakır at which the HDP President Selahattin Demirtaş planned to give a speech and during the press statement in Suruç which ended in a massacre. The attitude of the state in these events, where dozens of people were killed, was similar to its attitude towards the October 10th massacre. This attitude of the state is unacceptable with regard to the right to life. The public authorities have failed to take the adequate and necessary measures in terms of protecting the right to life. The Minister for Interior has stated that security measures (e.g. body searches) had been taken for the area in which the rally would take place and that no measure had therefore been taken in the front of the train station.
The same attitude is observed with respect to the freedom of peaceful assembly. The Ministries of Interior and Justice, the Governor and Directorate for Security are of the opinion that the freedom of peaceful assembly is restricted to the location in which the rally was planned to take place. Yet, even the name of Law No. 2911 is ‘Law on Assemblies and Demonstration Marches’. Therefore, the responsibilities of public officials cannot be limited to only the rally area in terms of both general principles and the characteristics of the freedom of peaceful assembly. The positive obligations with respect to the freedom of peaceful assembly have not been met. Forces outside of the public authorities have violently prevented the freedom of citizens to take part in a peaceful assembly. The public authorities have failed to take the adequate, necessary and effective measures to prevent the acts aiming to violate the right to life and to obstruct the freedom of peaceful assembly.
Consequently,
1- The two suicide attacks that took place in front of the Ankara train station against our friends are within the scope of crimes against humanity. We condemn those who have performed and instigated this brutal massacre as well as those who have caused it by failing to perform their duties.
2- We call for the resignation of the Minister of Interior in particular, and the Governor of Ankara, the Ankara Director of Security as well as other persons responsible for failing to meet their responsibility of prevention and demand the launch of an investigation against these persons.
3- The Governor of Ankara and the Ankara Director for Security, who have failed to comply with the decision for a national mourning or who have implemented this decision in a perfunctory manner and who have prevented our memorial with disrespect should be subject to an effective investigation for these offenses.
4- The ECtHR has noted five principles in the case of Jordan v. UK (2001), which would come to be known as the Jordan principles. According to these principles
- The investigating authorities should take action on their own accord in cases where the right to life in concerned.
- There must be an independent investigator.
- All information, documents, reports and evidence concerning the event should be duly collected.
- Action should be taken promptly and the investigation should proceed with a reasonable speed.
- The process –the process of investigation and prosecution- should be open to public oversight.
The investigation should be performed in accordance with these principles and the broadcasting ban in this respect should immediately be lifted.
6- The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor should employ the principles of an effective investigation (the Jordan principles) and identify the suicide bomber, reveal the organisations with which these people are associated, and bring the massacre before the court in all its aspects.
7- An investigation commission should be established at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey to shed light on all aspects of the massacre in view of its political and social consequences.
This report is based on preliminary observations. A more detailed report will be published in the upcoming period. The names of persons who lost their lives in the massacre will be published separately.
The Human Rights Association Headquarters