Unions and civil society groups: ‘We don’t recognize the ban and we’ll commemorate the victims of Ankara massacre’
As Ankara Police Department announced that all ‘kinds of assembling in Ankara, especially in front of and around the Ankara Station’, are banned on 10 October 2016 in reference to the current ‘state of emergency’, several Unions and civil society institutions have released a statement expressing their decision to ‘not step back’.
Ankara Police Department has recently released an announcement with regards to the banning of the previously planned organization and assembling that is to take place in front of Ankara Train Station on Monday, October 10th, in memory of those who lost their lives in the Ankara massacre of last year.
As October 10 Solidarity Association, several workers’ unions, and civil society institutions, along with members and representatives of political parties, had announced that they were going to assemble on the site of the massacre on Monday at 10:04, the officials put a ban on ‘all kinds of major assembling’ to be held on that day and explained that ‘only a very small symbolic group of delegates could hold a ceremony.’
In reaction to the decision of the authorities, October 10 Solidarity Association, KESK (Union of Public Workers), DİSK (Union of Progressive Workers), TMMOB (Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects), and TTB (Turkish Medical Association) have released a joint-statement where they expressed their ‘decision to hold the commemoration ceremony regardless of the announcements of the officials.’
Emphasizing in their joint-statement that they see the ‘decision of the Ankara Governor’s Office as unlawful, unreasonable, and remorseless’, the groups’ representatives included the following remarks in their press release: “We are not going to allow the Ankara massacre to be covered up and we are not going to allow Ankara to be drained into dirt and darkness. Whatever the consequences would be, we are not going to step back from our struggle. As members of KESK, DİSK, TMMOB, TTB, and October 10 Peace and Solidarity Association, and, along with our friends who are defendants of peace and democracy, we are going to be present in front of the train station, where the massacre took place, at 10:04 on Monday, 10 October 2016, with our cloves in our hands.”
Source: https://www.birgun.net/haber-detay/ankara-daki-10-ekim-anmasi-yasagina-tepki-130772.html