Retirees’ rebellion queue reaches the Palace

Ebru ÇELİK

Olives, cheese, eggs, jam, tea, milk, honey, and butter. When we look at market prices, the cost of this incomplete breakfast list exceeds 1,277 lira in total. The shopping list doesn’t even include cucumbers or tomatoes. Meanwhile, the Ramadan Feast bonus given to retirees is 4,000 lira. Spend it all you want.

Emine Erdoğan's past suggestion for palace austerity "Dry and store mangoes" and the Directorate of Religious Affairs' advice "Eat avocado at suhoor" still ring in retirees’ ears. They have come to understand that in this country, both healthy living and proper nutrition are rights reserved only for the wealthy. If the Palace and its entourage had to survive on 14,000 TL, they too would take to the streets, shouting just like the retirees: "We are hungry, we can’t make ends meet, we can’t access healthcare, we can’t afford rent, we sit in the dark to avoid high electricity bills." But we know that the Palace will never understand the plight of the hungry…

RETIREES ON THE STREETS, HOPE IN THEIR HANDS

Retirees have also taken to the streets. They have raised their voices for the fundamental rights they cannot access, even marching all the way to Ankara but it wasn’t enough. Now, the All Retirees' Union is coming together across several districts of İstanbul from March 10 to 14 under the slogan "We can't make ends meet, hear us!"

At the stands they set up in city squares, they are gathering signatures, support, and solidarity from everyone struggling to make a living. Their demands include free healthcare services for retirees and the removal of co-payments, a flat 15,000 TL increase in pensions, rent support for retirees without a home, a rollback on electricity price hikes and discounts for retirees, food support for those unable to afford proper nutrition, and an end to food price inflation. Every day, retirees stood at these stands to demand their rights and we joined them in the streets of İstanbul.

A PASTRY IN HAND, WAITING TO SIGN

We visited the stand set up in front of the Eminönü Pier in Kadıköy. Dozens of retirees struggling to make ends meet lined up to sign. When one stand wasn’t enough, another was added beside it.

Everyone signing was angry about different issues. Some held a small olive-filled pastry in their hands, while others were fasting, waiting for iftar to eat a meal of pasta and soup at a municipal tent. Among those signing was retired civil servants, women who said they were barely scraping by. Yet, they knew there were others in even worse conditions.

They had seen, heard, and experienced how those receiving the lowest pensions had considered suicide because they simply couldn't survive. And they were right who knows how many elderly people in this country have faced the same fate, unable to make ends meet?

“SEND IT TO US, SO WE CAN EAT TOO”

At the stand of the All-Retirees’ Union, we reminded visitors that they were given a 4,000-lira Ramadan Feast bonus and asked what they planned to do with it. Meliha Şahiner responded, "With 4,000 liras, I can barely cover my heating expenses. When we go to the market, just the essentials start at 2,000 liras. I want them to send us a Ramadan food package filled with the avocado, mango, asparagus, and buffalo yogurt they tell us to eat. They eat these things with our money. How painful... They live in such luxury and yet look at what they offer to those of us who can’t make ends meet—just words. Let them send it to us so we can eat too. There’s nothing left for us because they eat with our money."

Şahiner also pointed out that many retirees’ resort to selling small items on the streets at the end of the month to survive, adding, "Their advice is nothing but a joke."

MEAT FOR DINNER, THANKS TO GUESTS

Sıddık Şipal, who migrated from Van to İstanbul, stood watching the retirees signing the petition, dressed in his old jacket and beanie. He said that without owning a home, he wouldn't be able to survive on his 14,000-lira pension. "I bought 2 kilos of meat yesterday because I was expecting a guest. Thanks to them, we got to eat meat too. It cost 2,000 lira, and I bought a bottle of cola for 70 lira—just to host a guest," he said.

When we asked, "Do you buy and eat meat regularly?" Şipal responded, "Are you joking? If we manage to eat white meat once a week, we’re lucky." He added that he planned to give his 4,000-lira holiday bonus to his grandchildren as pocket money for Eid.

Meanwhile, another retired gentleman overheard us discussing the 4,000-lira bonus and approached, asking, "Do the ones in the palace break their fast with 4,000 lira?" He continued, "The ones who put us in this situation used to act as if God and religion didn’t exist before they came to power. God and religion were always there. I don’t understand how they act like they’ve been the only ones upholding faith for the past 23 years, giving thanks as if they were its guardians. But one thing I do know is that these faithless people have burned the innocent along with the guilty."

THE COLD WINTER WILL BE ACCOUNTED FOR

Mustafa Durna, the Kadıköy Branch President of the All-Retirees’ Union, stood in front of their petition stand, addressing commuters disembarking from the ferry: "As retirees, we can't make ends meet, we can't feed ourselves, we can't live." He called for support through signatures.

Durna emphasized that they would not give up their struggle against the poverty imposed on retirees, stating:

"How many retirees have died in this country? How many people have died because they couldn't access medicine or healthcare? Many of our friends passed away because they couldn’t receive treatment. The average rent in İstanbul is 23,000 lira, while our pension is only 14,469 lira. We launched this petition to demand access to food, shelter, and healthcare. We have endured this harsh winter, but we will hold the government accountable for the cold we’ve suffered."

We traveled from one end of İstanbul to the other, arriving in Esenyurt, Esenkent. The location changed, but the struggles remained the same. Those passing by the small stand grumbled about hunger and poverty, just as those signing did. Young people came to sign, as did elderly citizens heading out with their canes to buy bread.

"WE WERE REVOLUTIONARIES OF THE '70S, AND WE WILL KEEP FIGHTING"

Three retired women sit on a bench. One of them is eating a Ramadan flatbread, without even a sip of water. All three have signed the petition because they can’t make ends meet.

We asked, “Do you have hope?”: "What hope? We have none. But instead of sitting at home, we wanted to raise our voices. Maybe 10 signatures won’t make a difference, but 100,000 might," they added:

"We were revolutionaries of the '70s. We can’t just sit still without fighting," said retiree Sevim Göymen. "As we age, our health problems increase. Having a nice meal or a dessert outside isn’t an option. What we earn goes to medicine and healthcare."

Nasibe Çelik, on the other hand, shared her unfulfilled dream: "I had imagined a different kind of retirement. I wanted to travel, to see the world. At the very least, I wish I could sit at home and enjoy a piece of dessert. I worked; I paid my taxes. Everyone deserves a comfortable retirement."

IT'S NOT US, THEY NEED THE 4,000 LİRA

As we passed by, we asked Yakup Yılmaz, who had stopped to sign the petition, “Can you make ends meet?”

"Of course, I can. I'm one of the lucky ones because I receive 20,000 lira," he said with a smile. Then, his tone changed: "What do you mean 'making ends meet'? Instead of supporting my son and daughter financially, my children are supporting me. It’s humiliating for a father."

Yılmaz pointed out the lack of a united spirit of struggle, adding: "We used to fight for our rights in the streets. Now, people try to claim their rights from behind a desk. That 4,000-lira bonus they’re giving us should be returned. We don’t need money that barely covers the cost of 3 liters of milk and 5 kilos of yogurt. The ones we’d be returning it to are the ones who truly need 4,000 lira. They are the ones in need."

Gülsen Şener Gülseven, the Esenyurt Branch President of the All-Retirees’ Union, stated that the campaign would continue from Bahçeşehir Boğazköy to Esenkent, Esenyurt Cumhuriyet Square, Tabela Square, and finally Avcılar. "Seeing retirees in the squares gives people hope. We will grow stronger."

The elderly are proving, with determination, that they have not retired from the fight for a better country. They are taking to the streets—not just for themselves, but for future generations as well.

WE WILL NOT ACCEPT THIS PLUNDER

Zeynel Abidin ERGEN – President of the All-Retirees’ Union

“As February electricity bills started arriving, public complaints have surged. Many people received double bills for February. Now, bills are coming in at twice or even more than the previous amounts. There is outright plunder in electricity pricing. Another form of plunder is happening in healthcare. As medication prices increase, so do our co-payments. The same goes for examination fees. On top of that, retirees who are forced to go to private hospitals due to delays in tests and surgeries are living a nightmare. Retirees receiving meagre pensions cannot possibly withstand this level of exploitation. Through the petition campaign we launched in February, we are raising our voices in public spaces, demanding an end to this plunder in electricity and healthcare. We are calling out: HEAR US!”

Note: This article is translated from the original Turkish version titled İsyan kuyruğu Saray’a uzandı, published in BirGün newspaper on March 12, 2025.