Workplace Murder in Istanbul, 10 Workers Dead
A work elevator carrying workers at Torun Center construction in Istanbul's Mecidiyeköy district fell from floor 32, leaving 10 workers dead.
According to a statement by Istanbul's Governor's Office, the names of dead workers are as follows: Tahir Kara, Hıdır Ali Genç, İsmail Sarıtaş, Bilal Bal, Cengiz Tatoğlu, Murat Usta, Menderes Meşe, Vahdet Biçer, Ferdi Kara, Cengiz Bilgi.
Not revealing their names due to the fear of losing their jobs, eyewitness workers said the following:
"Prior to the accident, the lift broke around 6 pm. It got jammed. It would jam frequently. There is no maintenance service. Electricians come and unjam the elevator. The lift functions again. They came last night as well and the lift started working again. Not an hour later, the lift fell to the ground. It fell last month as well. Last night, it fell from the 32nd floor. There are 4 basement levels. Which means that it fell 36 floors."
İstanbul Governor Hüseyin Avni Mutlu arrived to the workplace murder scene last night and delivered a statement. "One of things I first observed is that the carrying was made outside the work shift hours," Mutlu said. Regarding the workplace murder investigation, 8 were detained by the police. On the other hand, a group assembled in Mecidiyeköy district to protest the governor.
Labor Minister: Investigation underway
Minister of Labor and Social Security Faruk Çelik also visited the aforementioned construction site. Çelik said the following in a statement:
"The reason of this tragic incident is the fall of an elevator after derailing. A formal and administrational investigation is underway to find out the reason behind the incident."
The incident took place around 7:45pm local time on Saturday, leaving 10 workers dead. Geda-Majör Ltd., the firm in charge of construction site's elevators, released a statement saying that "they were only responsible for the periodical inspections, repairs and demontages. However, the management of the elevators system is not within our contract. "
8 suspects released
8 were released within the investigation concerning the death of 10 workers due to a work elevator accident in Istanbul's Mecidiyeköy district on the 32 floor.
Among those who were detained within the investigation included construction firm officials, contracted firm supervisors, occupational safety experts and lift maintenance specialists.
Protestors face police violence
Police attacked those who assembled at the construction site to protest the workplace murder after an appeal by Progressive Conferedation of Trade Unions of Turkey (DİSK), Public Workers Union (KESK), TMMOB and Turkish Doctors Union.
Prior to the protest, DİSK General Secretary Arzu Çerkezoğlu made the following appeal:
"The culprits behind this murder is the government that turned the city into a construction site and capital. The responsibles are the capital holders and their supporting AKP government. After the AKP rule, Turkey topped the workplace death tolls in Europe." (BM)