A tragedy invested the city of Soma, in Turkey, where, on the 13th of May, the local coal mine suffered by an explosion, and a consequent fire, during a shift change in the afternoon. At the moment of the explosion, two kilometers underground, more than 700 miners where at work. The blast and the fire, that lasted for at least two days, killed 301 miners.
Safety in mines in Turkey raised a lot of controversies lately. Already in 2013 miners protested against the dangerous conditions they were forced to work in, but the allegations were always dismissed. The Soma disaster is the deadliest incident in a mine in Turkey, but already in 1992 an explosion in a mine claimed more than 200 lives. The tragedy came along with a lot of revendications and criticism towards the government and their way to deal with the situation. Prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was heavily criticised during his visit in Soma when he stated that “such incidents can happen”. The discontent grew further after the premier made some antisemitic jokes and, exacerbating his position, a picture of one of his personal advisers, Yusuf Yerkel, who kicked a protester started circulating on the social networks. The protester was already surrounded by two soldiers who immobilized him on the ground, but Yerkel still kicked him. The government defended his actions, citing self defence as the reason.
Turkish government proclaimed three days of national mourning, but protests for the tragedy have crossed the country, where mining disasters are very frequent.
According to statistics, more than 3.000 mine workers lost their lives since 1941. Thousands of people took to the streets in Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir, but also in Soma, to denounce the government’s responsibility. But Erdogan responded with an iron hand and the police intervened with brutality against demonstrators, even against lawyers who came to Soma to assist families who lost someone, using tear gas, water cannons and rubber bullets. Right after the incident, the investigation started even if the company who owns the mine denied any “negligence”. 25 people were arrested, with several allegations, including involuntary slaughter. Among those arrested on Sunday, there were several high profile managers of the private company, the Soma Komur, including the general manager Dogru Ramazan, the finance director Ulu Ali and the operations manager Akin Celik.
Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Venezia