Dean Sancar: Police Have Been Hindering Education at University for Weeks

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Dean of Faculty of Political Sciences (SBF) at Ankara University, Prof. Dr. Serpil Sancar has made a statement as to the police violence and detention of 19 students that occurred yesterday (March 31).

Sancar calling students via Mülkiye Haber (Mülkiye News) has expressed that students acted carefully to not allow any tension by acting responsibly despite police’s provocative attitude.

Sancar highlighting that police used gas unrestrainedly has called SBF Academic Council for meeting today at 3 p.m.

Sancar’s statement is briefly as follows:

“They threw gas even though I said I was dean”

“Today, on March 31 Thursday, as midterm exams are going on at the SBF, Riot Squad entering the campus to prevent the fight erupted among students, acted in a provocative way against students without a reason or problem by breaking into the SBF a couple of times.

“Later on, they forced the students at the Faculty garden to enter the building, batter the academics trying to come between them, and fired gas cartridge to where I stood even though I said I was dean. A large number of personnel, students, and lecturers (including me) have been disturbed because of this.

“During these incidents, the students haven’t reacted negatively by acting circumspectly and that behaved responsibly to not prepare an environment of tension with the police”.

Gas capsule at the academic hall

“One of the gas cartridges got into one of our lecturers’ pocket and the lecturer entered Academic Meeting hall without realizing it to follow the conference.

“A while later, the gas cartridge exploding in the conference hall caused a huge panic”.

“Police have been hindering education for a few weeks”

“Education has been suspended for a day since it is impossible to make midterm exams within the issues in subject.

“Riot Squad entering the campus in order to intervene in the banners hung on the wall have been apart from this reason behaving badly against students and lecturers who were unaware of the incident in the faculty building for a few weeks, and causing chaos to an extent to hinder the education.

“Under these circumstance, I am calling SBF Academic Council for meeting today at 3 p.m.” (EKN/TK)