The Brother of a Turkish Protester Murdered by the Police Speaks Out
By Doğu Eroğlu
Photo by Dogu Eroglu, Stories of Violence from Turkey
On June 1, the second day of Turkey's nationwide protests that began in Istanbul's Gezi Park, Ethem Sarisülük, a laborer and human-rights activist, was shot in the head by a policeman in Ankara. After spending 13 days in intensive care, Ethem's heart stopped, and his family announced his death on June 14. Ten days later, Ahmet Şahbaz, the police officer who killed Ethem, was released from jail by a judge on the grounds that he acted in self-defense, a move that was greeted with a lot of anger on social media and in the streets. (Ahmet's trial was suspended by a judge last week, and advocates criticized this as another way the government was helping to protect the police.)
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