İbrahim Gündüz writes: HELLO

If we accept the day I stepped into the Güneş newspaper as an intern in 1987 as the beginning of my profession, I have been practicing journalism based in Ankara for 39 years. After working as a diplomacy reporter, political reporter, and parliamentary reporter for many years, for the last 8 years I have been writing articles and books on the subjects of colonial mining and plunder-based mining; I speak at panels and various programs as much as my strength and voice allow.

In this first article of mine on 12punto, I would like to share with you, albeit a bit late, my impressions regarding the seventh hearing of the İliç-Çöpler Gold Mine Disaster, which took place on February 13, 2024, on a subject that I can call the follow-up to my latest book, “The Çöpler Disaster”...

NOT ANNOUNCED DUE TO EXPERT SCANDAL

The seventh hearing of the 'Çöpler Disaster', which is being held at the Erzincan First High Criminal Court, began on April 14, 2026, in the shadow of news about an “expert scandal.”

When it was revealed that Prof. Dr. Zafir Emekçi, who had his signature on the fourth expert report, had a commercial relationship with the Anagold company that operates the Çöpler Gold Mine, the court panel could not remain indifferent to this situation.

In fact, a verdict was expected to be announced at the seventh hearing, which began at 09:30 on Tuesday, April 14. The prosecutor had announced his opinion on the merits and had requested sentences ranging from 22 to 24 years for 13 defendants, two of whom were under arrest, for conscious negligence. After all, the Çöpler Gold Mine had changed hands, and Cengiz Holding, which took over the mine, was spreading the word everywhere that they would reopen the mine as if nothing had happened.

However, when this development regarding the expert panel emerged, the prosecutor withdrew his opinion. It was decided that the detention of Canadian manager Iain Ronald Guille and Geotechnical Engineer Ali Rıza Kalender would continue, while Occupational Health and Safety manager Selçuk Çiftlik would be released.

And the court panel adjourned the hearing to July 7, 2026, to form a new expert panel.

DENİZ YAVUZYILMAZ - LAWYER TENSION

Undoubtedly, the seventh hearing was marked by the fight between CHP Zonguldak Deputy Deniz Yavuzyılmaz and Volkan Dülger, the lawyer for the Canadian defendant Iain Ronald Guille.

Just as Volkan Dülger began to speak, stating that he would make a long defense to request his client's release, Deniz Yavuzyılmaz, who was watching the hearing in the hall, raised his voice in the hall, saying, “Where is the Country Manager?”

When Yavuzyılmaz said “country manager,” he was pointing to ANAGOLD Turkey Manager Cengiz Yalçın Demirci, who had not attended any of the hearings.

Upon these words, Lawyer Volkan Dülger literally went crazy. He reacted to Deniz Yavuzyılmaz from a very high pitch, saying in a very loud tone, “Enough is enough, what is this!!!... Be quiet, brother!!! You cannot talk like this!!!”

Upon this unexpected reaction, Deniz Yavuzyılmaz also raised his voice and went on the counter-attack. For a while, the courtroom echoed with mutual shouting and yelling with words like, “You cannot talk to me like that... You are the one who cannot talk to me like that... You are insolent... This is not the Parliament... You cannot interfere with what I am going to say...”

Court President Yavuz Özcan also tried to stop the parties with a loud tone of voice amidst these high-tension mutual exchanges, but he was unsuccessful. Meanwhile, CHP Bursa Deputy Orhan Sarıbal, who was in the hall, also joined the argument.

When he also attacked Lawyer Dülger with the same tone as Yavuzyılmaz, things got out of hand.

At this time, party members who were with the deputies also walked towards lawyer Dülger, saying, “You cannot insult our deputy,” and the situation in the hall fell apart. The Court President, who asked for help from the police, gave the instruction to evacuate the hall. Upon this, the police, who first started to remove other spectators and victim families from the hall, then came to the journalists and deputies and asked us to leave the hall. Although the deputies and we resisted for a while, we left the hall because the court president adjourned the session.

PRESIDENT DID NOT ALLOW DEPUTIES INTO THE HALL

The hearing started again about an hour later. However, the Court President did not allow the CHP deputies into the hall. Yavuzyılmaz and Sarıbal expressed their reactions from the open door of the hall. They argued that the principle of publicity was violated. At first, they were not letting us in either, but later the Court President asked for the journalists to be taken inside. When the deputies were not taken inside, this time the defense lawyers and some families, especially the family of Uğur Yıldız, left the hall. Then the court panel announced its interim decision. As I mentioned at the beginning, due to the expert disgrace, it was decided to form a new expert panel and to adjourn the hearing to July 7, 2026.

IT IS A CASE OF FLAGRANTE DELICTO

The Çöpler Gold Mine Disaster, which occurred on February 13, 2024, is undoubtedly a turning point in colonial mining, and it must be. Because the Çöpler Disaster is a case of flagrante delicto where all the lies of the mining lobby that holds Turkey captive, especially cyanide gold miners, are exposed.

It has been very clearly documented that the rhetoric they have been telling the nation for years, such as “Everything is under control... It is being inspected very strictly... American-Canadian standards... We will restore it to its former state and leave...” are blatant lies. The highest-level officials of the ministries who came to the TBMM Research Commission established after the disaster said only one thing: “We do not inspect! We do not have the authority!”

EVEN THE DEPUTIES WERE ABOUT TO SWALLOW THEIR TONGUES IN SURPRISE

Exactly one year has passed since the hearings, which started on March 17, 2025, at the Erzincan First High Criminal Court following the disaster. The seventh hearing was held on April 14, 2026.

Everyone is trying to save themselves. We see a similar attitude from the company representatives in the courtroom this time, as the attitude shown by the representatives of the ministries in the same Parliamentary Commission. No one is responsible. No one is authorized. In other words, it is a disaster that just happened on its own! If they weren't ashamed, they would say, “It is an act of God”...

Neither the country manager nor the highest-level officials of the mine are responsible. In fact, the vast majority of those for whom punishment is requested are abroad. Two scapegoats, one Canadian and one Turkish, have been found, and they want to punish them and close the case.

Those who make decisions with the greed for more gold and more profit, those who overload the cyanide leaching field, those who create production pressure, those who allow the world's most dangerous mining and ecocide at the bottom of the Euphrates, and those who close their eyes while all this is happening are not in the courtroom anyway. Let alone coming as defendants, they were not even called as witnesses!

Against the persistent demands of the lawyers, the court panel became a wall. With the expert reports prepared one after another, first the politicians and then the high-level officials of the mine were kept out of the trial. They went so far that they even appointed an academic who has a commercial relationship with the company as an expert, and based on the fourth expert report, which also has his signature, the travel ban and judicial control conditions of ANAGOLD Turkey Manager Cengiz Yalçın Demirci were lifted.

IT IS AN INVITATION

Why am I telling you these things? This disaster and the subsequent court process are an invitation to future disasters in Turkey. In other words, a message is being given to some people: “Even if you cause such a huge disaster, you can get away with it.”

I think this is why Cengiz Holding acted so boldly and suddenly bought 80 percent of the shares of the Canada-US SSR Mining Company, the controlling partner of the Çöpler Gold Mine.

SSR Mining is aware that things are troublesome in Çöpler and that if the mine continues to be operated, greater disasters may occur in the future. For this reason, it has implemented the hit-and-run tactic they apply all over the world here as well.

It hit what it was going to hit, now it has chosen to run.

It sold all its shares to Cengiz Holding for 1.5 billion dollars. Its earnings up to this point are at least 5.5 billion dollars. If we add the sale figure, there is a total gain of 7 billion dollars.

WHILE IT SHOULD BE CLOSED AND REHABILITATED

Today, in Çöpler, there is a half-collapsed leach field, a toxic waste dam full to the brim, and a devastated geography. While it should be closed and rehabilitated immediately, Cengiz says “continue”! It is a mine that has no EIA, all permits are canceled, and the license period will expire soon. A Chernobyl at the bottom of the Euphrates, one of Turkey's most strategic water resources! Preparations are being made...

We wrote about it in our book “The Çöpler Disaster,” which was released at the beginning of this year. We explained at length that reopening the mine contains great risks for the region, for Turkey, and for the employees. A toxic waste dam of over 50 million tons, which slides 8.5 centimeters every year on the earthquake fault line, and a leach field that is half-collapsed in the same environment.

Immediately below are offices and tank leach facilities. There may be those who think, ‘Whatever you say, in the end, even if a new disaster happens, no one will take responsibility again, and the real culprits will not be in front of the judge again.’

They might be right, but the world and Turkey are going through a turning point that they cannot understand or do not want to understand because it does not suit their interests. Thirst and hunger are the greatest dangers threatening social life. If you insist on poisoning and destroying a water source that is the lifeblood of millions of people, knowingly and turning a deaf ear to all warnings, ignoring all the facts, there will be a consequence. Today or tomorrow, but there will definitely be a consequence.