The massacre with the deaths of 15 civilians, one soldier and the Gendarmerie Regional Commander Bahtiyar Aydın on October 22, 1993 in Lice district of Diyarbakır was left under impunity after 25 years. Izmir 1st Assize Court issued the acquittal of the only defendant of the case, former Diyarbakır Gendarmerie Regiment Commander retired Colonel Eşref Hatipoğlu. Lawyer Murat Yunus Muratkan was following the case on behalf of the families from Lice since the beginning. “Heavy human rights violations in the 1990s were acquitted with this verdict,” Muratkan said.
What happened in Lice and in the case of Lice?
16 people were killed in Lice district of Diyarbakır on October 22, 1993, including Brigadier General Bahtiyar Aydın. Many homes and workplaces were burned down. Hundreds of people were forced to flee. During the incidents, 400 homes and 242 offices were burned down in the central district; the Lice population, which was previously 13,650 before the destruction, decreased to 2500s. The indictment on the massacre was accepted one day before the time limitation and the prosecution started 21 years later, on January 16, 2015.
According to the indictment, the attack was not organized by PKK, despite the statements of the officers of the time. The indictment claimed hevy life imprisonment and an additional imprisonment sentence for up to 24 years against the former Diyarbakır Gendarmerie Regiment Commander and retired Colonel Eşref Hatipoğlu and Lieutenant Tünay Yanardağ due to “premeditated murder,” “public incitement towards riot and killing each other” and “establishing a criminal organization with the purpose of engaging in criminal activity.” The defendants were not arrested.
The lawsuit was transferred from Diyarbakır to Eskişehir and back to Diyarbakır from there; and to Izmir lastly. The court in Izmir claimed the prosecution of the defendants are bound to permission, abated the proceeding to await permission. The case was paused on June 13, 2014. 3rd Penal Chamber of the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) reversed the abatement of proceeding; as defendant Yanardağ lost his life in August 2015. The only defendant of the case, Hatipoğlu, was recently acquitted of all charges.
10.12.2018
cumhuriyet.com.tr