Killed journalist Metin Göktepe's vest given to his mother 26 years later

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A vest belonging to Metin Göktepe, a journalist who was killed by police officers in 1996 in İstanbul, was given to his mother, Fadime Göktepe.

Özlem Tutkan, a friend of the journalist, gave the vest to his mother during the Metin Göktepe Journalism Award ceremony, which is held every year on April 10, the day he was killed.

While handing over the vest, Tutkan said, "I have never washed it, I have kept it in a bag. Maybe a little bit of his scent remained on it. It was this vest he was wearing in all the photos," according to a report by daily Yeni Yaşam.

"Actually, I've been thinking about this for years. I always thought about this on Metin's birthdays, but I did not have the courage to look into his mother's eyes.

"For years, I spent those days crying all the time, but I couldn't give it. But on the other hand, I thought it was something that his mother should have, not me."

Göktepe had given the vest to her because she liked it so much, said Tutkan. At the time he started working for Evrensel, we would live very close. That's why we had been seeking each other often. He would come to us for tea or coffee.

"Whenever we come together, we would fight for that vest. One day, he gave the vest to me, saying, 'Damn, take it, it's yours.' At that time, it was just something you would like after seeing your friend wearing. It was nothing special. Like, you take something of his, he takes something of yours. He gave the vest to me because I liked it very much."

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About Metin Göktepe

On January 8, 1996, Metin Göktepe went to Alibeyköy district, to follow the funerals of four inmates who were killed by soldiers in Ümraniye Prison.

He was not let in by the police on the ground that he did not have a press card. He was taken into custody with other hundreds of people and was brought to Eyüp Indoor Sports Hall. While he was being taken into custody, he screamed "I am Metin Göktepe, I am a journalist!" He was beaten to death by police officers while he was in custody.

In the beginning, charges against police officers were denied. The case was transferred to several courts in Turkey for "security reasons".

In 2000, an Afyon court found 5 police officers guilty for murder and hiding evidence of murder, sentencing them to 7 years and 6 months of prison. Another police officer was sentenced to 20 months in prison and 5 months of license suspension after a court of appeals overturned the court's verdict. After the Conditional Release and Postponement of Sentence Law came into power on December 19, 2000, the convicted police officers were released before completing their sentences.

(HA/VK)