Education union reacts to naming of school after 'torturer'

The Education and Science Workers' Union (Eğitim Sen), İzmir Branch No. 5, expressed its objection to the naming of a primary school in Buca, İzmir, after Esat Oktay Yıldıran.

The statement noted that İzmir Governorship continued to change the school names associated with Buca, despite discontent and protests. 

"Esat Oktay Yıldıran served as the director of Diyarbakır Prison after the September 12 coup, causing the death of nearly 60 people during his tenure as a torturer. It is unacceptable for the name of such a torturer to be given to an educational institution," the union stated.

The statement from Education and Science Workers' Union (Eğitim Sen) İzmir Branch No. 5 is as follows:

"The name of Belenbaşı Village Primary School, established in 1959, has been changed to Esat Oktay Yıldıran Primary School, a figure associated with the torture of the 1980s. It is unacceptable for the name of a torturer who served as the commander of Diyarbakır Prison, a symbol of the September 12 1980 coup, to be given to an educational institution.

"The AKP (Justice and Development Party) government, as a result of public reaction, removed the name of this torturer from the monument in the park. In 2010, the AKP-led Fatih Municipality dismantled the name of Esat Oktay Yıldıran from the monument in Fatih Martyrs Park. Now, the AKP government is giving the name of this torturer, whose name it removed from the park in 2010, to an educational institution. As Eğitim Sen, we condemn giving the name of an individual known for his torture and responsible for the deaths of dozens of people to an educational institution. We demand that this disgrace be rectified promptly, and we call for an immediate reversal of the name change made by İzmir Governorship."

Reactions from others

Many politicians and human rights advocates also expressed their reactions on social media to the name change.

President of the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) Şebnem Korur Fincancı: "Living in an era where they go beyond impunity and move to a stage where torturers are rewarded is a shame for all of us, unable to escape the forgetfulness of memory!"

Co-Chair of the Human Rights Association (İHD) Eren Keskin: "A human rights offender, Esat Oktay Yıldıran! The point we have reached is the legitimization of violence and torture against the Kurds. Those who once said 'We are different' are exactly that state themselves."

MP for the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu: "What kind of scandal is this? They named a school after a torturer who committed horrendous crimes against humanity! This is a crime! Do you want students to be like him?"

MP for the Republican People's Party (CHP) Sezgin Tanrıkulu: "If you ask what the Kurdish issue is; it is the naming of a school in Izmir, 40 years after the Military Coup of September 12, where thousands of people were tortured in Diyarbakır Prison, responsible for torture, Esat Oktay Yıldıran. The Justice and Development Party government once again showed its true face to our people."

MP for the Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA Party) Mehmet Emin Ekmen: "What is the People's Alliance? It is the official ceremony of giving the name of torturer Esat Oktay Yıldıran to a school, and nobody questioning what we are doing."

MP for the Felicity Party (Saadet Partisi) Bülent Kaya: "The fact that the name of the torturer commander Esat Oktay, who served as the Internal Security Commander in Diyarbakır Prison after the September 12 Coup, is given to a school in İzmir represents the sad end of the AKP." (TY/PE)