Second day in the İsias Hotel case trial: 'Our children were buried in the pile of sand'
The trial of 11 defendants, 5 of whom are in custody, continues on the second day in Adıyaman, regarding the İsias Hotel, which collapsed in the earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş on February 6, claiming the lives of 72 people.
The statements of the plaintiffs were taken while the defendants connected to the court through the Audio and Video Information System (SEGBİS) for the hearing held at the Adıyaman 3rd Heavy Penal Court.
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Anadolu Agency reported that Osman Akın, a physical education teacher in Northern Cyprus who lost two children in the earthquake and one of the plaintiffs heard in the trial, stated that they were planning to come to Adıyaman for volleyball finals and chose this hotel because they learned that "İsias Hotel was clean, decent, and especially safe" during their hotel search.
Akın continued his speech as follows:
"We settled our children in their rooms. There were 39 of us at İsias, and I moved to another hotel in Kahramanmaraş with 16 people. On the morning of February 5, we headed to Kahramanmaraş; settlements were completed, and the children's match was about to start. I don't know if I went to Kahramanmaraş to save my life or for something else. If I had stayed in the same hotel, I wouldn't be here. I stayed at the teachers' guesthouse in Kahramanmaraş. It was a major earthquake but that building didn't collapse. I stayed in a building where human life is valued. We left the building without anyone even getting a scratch. Adıyaman collapsed, my world collapsed. There was chaos, and we walked a kilometer to bring the children to a safe area. Then I headed to Adıyaman. I could only come on Tuesday after the earthquake. The scene I saw was just a pile of sand. 72 lives were lost in that hotel.
"We trust in justice, that is why we are here"
I can't use the word 'dead,' I don't want to hear it. Our children, aged between 11 and 14, were buried in the sand, and we struggled with hope to reach our children. When hope ran out for their lives, we wanted to reach them intact. Imagine praying for that. Concrete is a strong material, isn't it? Families dug with their hands to reach their children.
We trust in justice, that's why we are here, and we believe you will make the best decision. It was mentioned in yesterday's trial, the material truth is the lives that were left incomplete. We started shouting for justice before we could experience our pain. We trust the Turkish judiciary. We will be here until the mindset that shamelessly took our beloved ones receives the highest penalty."
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"İsias was just a pile of sand"
Ayşe Akın, Osman Akın's wife, also spoke at the trial and recounted how she sent her husband and two sons happily to Adıyaman.She added:
"İsias was just a pile of sand. When we got off the bus, we were face to face with the reality. I am a mother with strong faith, and in that scene, I couldn't bring myself to pray. We found buckets, and families lined up on the roofs, throwing stones one by one into the buckets to reach our children below. The stones in my hand easily turned into sand, none of them were heavy. Our trust in justice is infinite. As families, we can only tell a very small part of what we have experienced."
Sefer Aydoğdu, who lost her child, also demanded the harshest punishment for the defendants.
İrem Aydoğdu, the sister of the deceased İmran Aydoğdu, said, "My brother drowned in a pile of sand; we are no longer alive. These children were the bright faces of Cyprus, the pride of their country. Not only us but all of Cyprus was affected."
The owner of the collapsed hotel, detained defendant Ahmet B. was asked, "Do you know who the deceased are, their names?" to which he replied, "I am also experiencing the same pain; I do not want to answer the questions of relatives."
"Our children's mouths, noses, ears were filled with sand"
The statements of the plaintiffs continued to be taken in the afternoon session of the trial.
Mehmet Akif Bilge, the father of Hasan Bilge who lost his life, said, "Our children's mouths, noses, ears were filled with sand, there was no life triangle, as indicated in the prosecutor's report; they died from lack of air. We trust in the supreme justice, there must be an end, we are complaining against all relevant parties."
Mehmet Bulut, the father of Aykut Bulut who lost his life, added, "This is not fate, it's a murder."
Bulut continued, "The search and rescue team from Cyprus came, every stone we lifted scattered like sand in our palms. We lost all hope; we were trapped in that wreckage like our children. Ahmet B. came to the wreckage; his concern was not the people underneath but his safe."
Önder Cırık's sister, Özlem Arslan, expressed that she is complaining against the defendants and all those responsible, saying:
"We have experienced all the emotions a person can go through in a lifetime—fear, hope, hunger, hell. Yesterday, we heard many lies; the defendants did not tell the truth. Every time a bed was lifted, we were afraid, wondering whose relative would come out because every time a bed was lifted, we knew there would be a funeral. İsias Hotel was a murder weapon, which cost 72 lives."
"We experience the same pain every day"
Plaintiff Mehmet Çetiner, stating that he reached his lifeless child on February 11, emphasized, "Let there be no lies, the building was a pile of sand. I saw something that no person, no parent should see, I saw hell. We experience the same pain every day. Let justice prevail, and may others not experience what we have gone through; let lessons be learned," he said.
Mother Deniz Çetiner expressed that she is complaining against all those responsible, saying, "My child did not die from freezing; it is written in the report that he died from abdominal pressure and internal bleeding, he died in his bed. I wish it had fallen on the defendants," she said.
"My daughter was recognized by the lotus flower tattoo"
Müzeyyen Gökçen's father, İsmail Gökçen, expressing that they also died on February 6, stated, "Yesterday, a play was staged among the defendants, 'I have no knowledge,' a man who is an architect says 'I am the recognized family here' as if pointing with a stick under the rug. They ruined our lives, we have no future. Every morning when I go to work, I ask myself why I am working. My daughter was identified by the lotus flower tattoo; we had her photo and the lotus flower engraved on the tombstone," he said.
The trial will continue with the testimony of the plaintiffs. (RT/PE)