Protest held on the anniversary of the Maraş Massacre

The Alevi Bektashi Federation İzmir components held a press statement to commemorate those who lost their lives and to protest the massacre on the anniversary of the Maraş Massacre.

According to the report by Duvar, numerous representatives from political parties and non-governmental organizations attended the statement held on Alsancak Kıbrıs Şehitleri Street. During the statement, slogans such as "Shoulder to shoulder against fascism" and "Do not forget Maraş, do not let it be forgotten" were frequently chanted.

"LAW ENFORCEMENT BECAME COMPLICIT IN THE MASSACRE BY NOT INTERVENING"

Speaking on behalf of the group, Alevi Bektashi Federation Aegean Regional Representative Gülbahar Kaplan stated that "the state committed a crime against Alevis in Maraş 45 years ago."

Stating that, as in all Alevi massacres, Alevis were targeted following long preparations through announcements made from mosques that day, Kaplan said, "Pre-prepared weapons, axes, and gasoline canisters were distributed to the murderous mob, and an Alevi massacre was initiated in the city. This massacre, just like other Alevi massacres, took place under the supervision of the state, and the law enforcement forces in the city became complicit in the massacre by failing to intervene. In Maraş, hundreds of people—the elderly, the young, and children—were brutally slaughtered simply because they were Alevi. While houses were being burned, people trying to save their lives were killed with axes."

"WE ALEVIS WILL CONTINUE TO LOOK AT THE 73 NATIONS WITH A SINGLE GAZE"

Holding the MHP responsible for the massacre, Kaplan said, "Despite all this time that has passed, nothing has changed; on the contrary, the AKP, which has been in power for 21 of these 45 years, has also become a center of hostility toward Alevis. Because those who claim that everyone is Turkish and Sunni, who place the Presidency of Religious Affairs at the center of the state, and who established the Alevi Bektashi Cemevi Presidency under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism despite all our objections, cannot speak of peace, justice, or equality."

Kaplan concluded by saying the following:

"The point to which nationalist and political Islam has brought the country is clear. It is blood, tears, hunger, exile, and denial. We Alevis will continue to look at the 73 nations with a single gaze against all forms of monism and racism. We Alevis will continue to defend secularism against Sharia, racism, and all kinds of reactionism. We have not forgotten any massacre, especially the Alevi massacres, and we will not let them be forgotten."