Ethem Sarısülük

Sarısülük was born on 11 July 1986{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük Mezarı Başında Anıldı|url=http://www.dayanisma.net/2016/06/11/ethem-sarisuluk-mezari-basinda-anildi/|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Dayanışma.net|date=11 June 2016|language=Turkish|archive-date=21 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112014/http://www.dayanisma.net/2016/06/11/ethem-sarisuluk-mezari-basinda-anildi/|url-status=dead}} in Sungurlu, Çorum, to family of a Turkmen Alevi origin. In 1991, he moved to Ankara together with his family. His father, Muzaffer Sarısülük, was a literature teacher. However, he resigned and started to live alone in the countryside of Çorum due to various reasons.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük'ün babasının inanılmaz hikayesi|url=http://www.milliyet.com.tr/fotogaleri/47874-yasam-ethem-sarisuluk-un-babasinin-inanilmaz-hikayesi/1|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Milliyet|publisher=milliyet.com.tr|language=Turkish}} His father lives a life far from technology and practices vegetarianism. His mother, Sayfı, provided for the family by working as a cleaner. He had a poor childhood with three brothers and one sister. He completed his primary education in Kınık Primary School and started his high school education in Abidinpaşa Industrial Vocational High School; but did not continue his studies. Then he started going to Tuzluçayır High School; but left in the second grade.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük'ün babası: Oğlumun öleceğini biliyordum|url=http://t24.com.tr/haber/ethem-sarisulukun-babasi-oglumun-olecegini-biliyordum,232895|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=T24|publisher=t24.com.tr|date=27 June 2013|language=Turkish}} He was detained during the free education protests at this school. After high school he worked in various sectors such as transporting cargo and worked in OSTİM as a welding worker.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük'ün kayıp hayatı|url=http://www.demokrathaber.org/guncel/ethem-sarisulukun-kayip-hayati-h19989.html|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Demokrat Haber|publisher=demokrathaber.org|date=29 June 2013|language=Turkish}} For a while, he took part at a police station construction in Hakkâri.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük'ün fotoğrafı kampta değil karakolda çekilmiş!|url=http://www.radikal.com.tr/turkiye/ethem-sarisulukun-fotografi-kampta-degil-karakolda-cekilmis-1139428/|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Radikal|publisher=radikal.com.tr|date=27 June 2013|language=Turkish}}

File:Ethem Sarısülük'ün öldürüldüğü yer - 8.7.13.JPG

On 1 June, Sarısülük was wounded with a bullet shot by police officer Ahmet Şahbaz during the Gezi Park protests. In a few days all of his organs stopped functioning and he died 13 days later.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük'ün avukatı: Ethem'in kafasından kurşun çıktı|url=http://t24.com.tr/haber/ethem-sarisulukun-avukati-ethemin-kafasindan-kursun-cikti,232050|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=T24|publisher=t24.com.tr|date=15 June 2013|language=Turkish}}{{Dead link|date=March 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} 7 days after his family filed a criminal complaint, the area in which he was shot was reconnoitered.{{cite news|last1=Söylemez|first1=Ayça|title=Ethem Sarısülük Kasten Öldürüldü|url=http://bianet.org/bianet/bianet/148116-ethem-sarisuluk-kasten-olduruldu|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Bianet|publisher=bianet.org|date=1 July 2013|language=Turkish}}

His body was sent to the Keçiören Forensic Medicine Institute for an autopsy.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük hayatını kaybetti|url=http://www.ntv.com.tr/turkiye/ethem-sarisuluk-hayatini-kaybetti,RbgeaGSExUWOoYhXpjIHsQ|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=NTV|publisher=ntv.com.tr|date=14 June 2013|language=Turkish}} Apart from experts, the family's lawyers, Kazım Bayraktar and Teoman Özkan, joined the prosecutor and an observing expert for the autopsy. The process was recorded in the form of photos and videos. A 9-mm-bullet was removed from his brain. The bullet was estimated to have been fired at a distance of 4.8 meters. His family wanted to donate his organs; however, this request was not approved as the organs had become unusable following the autopsy.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük'ün ölümünde bilirkişi raporu|url=http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/ethem-sarisulukun-olumunde-bilirkisi-raporu-23528274|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Hürriyet|publisher=hurriyet.com.tr|date=18 June 2013|language=Turkish}}

On 3 September 2014, it was decided that the suspect, police officer Ahmet Şahbaz, was to be sentenced to 7 years and 9 months of imprisonment; consisting of a 1-year probation and 4 years and 2 months in prison.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük Davası'nda karar: Sanık polis Ahmet Şahbaz'a 7 yıl 9 ay hapis cezası|url=http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/ethem-sarisuluk-davasinda-karar-sanik-polis-ahmet-s-ye-7-yil-9-ay-hapis-cezasi-27132063|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Hürriyet|publisher=hurriyet.com.tr|date=3 September 2014|language=Turkish}} However, on 8 December 2014, the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office of the Supreme Court of Appeals, requested the sentence to be changed as the defendant Şahbaz had committed "willful murder" by "targeting the group in front of him and deliberately shooting them".{{cite news|title=Yargıtay'dan flaş Ethem Sarısülük kararı|url=http://www.milliyet.com.tr/yargitay-dan-flas-ethem-sarisuluk-gundem-1981282/|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Milliyet|publisher=milliyet.com.tr|date=8 December 2014|language=Turkish}}

On 16 June 2013, at 12:30 in Kızılay, the crowd was gathered for the funeral of Sarısülük. The police did not allow the funeral authorities to assemble in Kızılay for the commemoration ceremony. Police and gendarmerie teams closed the road at Batıkent junction when the funeral ceremony was taking place in Kızılay. People who had come to Kızılay for Sarısülük's funeral, left flowers at the spot in which Sarısülük was shot. The police intervened with people who wanted to take part in the commemoration ceremony. Water cannons and tear gas were used to disperse the crowd. A number of people were injured in the incident and two people were hit in the head by tear gas canister. Over 100 people were detained during the incident{{cite news|title=Cenaze törenine polisten barikat|url=http://www.milliyet.com.tr/cenaze-torenine-polisten-barikat/gundem/detay/1723932/default.htm|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Milliyet|publisher=milliyet.com.tr|date=17 June 2013|language=Turkish}}{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük son yolculuğuna uğurlanıyor|url=http://www.milliyet.com.tr/ankara-da-kritik-cenaze-toreni/gundem/detay/1723679/default.htm|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Milliyet|publisher=milliyet.com.tr|date=16 June 2013|language=Turkish}} and Sarısülük's body was taken to the village of Beylice in the town of Sungurlu in Çorum with the vehicle of Çankaya Municipality. CHP representative from Tunceli, Hüseyin Aygün, Çorum's representative, Tufan Köse, and various institutions and organizations participated in the funeral ceremony. The ceremony was carried out by the Çorum branch of the Hacı Bektaş Veli Foundation and followed the Alevi-Bektaşi tradition and custom.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük toprağa verildi|url=http://www.ntv.com.tr/galeri/turkiye/ethem-sarisuluk-topraga-verildi,bNMVC_T2Bk-C-8LYFUNKvw/uYFxgQOXt0qkflel2fuAug|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=NTV|publisher=ntv.com.tr|date=16 June 2013|language=Turkish}}

Established in 1979 as an illegal organization after the division of THKO, the TİKB issued a statement on its official website, following the death of Ethem Sarısülük. In this statement, it was alleged that Sarısülük was a member of the Turkey Revolutionary Communist League.{{cite web | title = Ethem yoldaşı kaybettik… | url = http://tikb.li/?p=902 | website = tikb.li | publisher = Turkey Revolutionary Communist League | accessdate = 13 June 2017 | language = Turkish | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20160304131201/http://tikb.li/?p=902 | archivedate = 4 March 2016 | url-status = live }}{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük TİKB'liymiş|url=http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/ethem-sarisuluk-tikbliymis-40091525|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Hürriyet|publisher=hurriyet.com.tr|date=19 April 2016|language=Turkish}}

To commemorate Ethem Sarısülük and to protest against the release of the police who killed Sarısülük, KESK Istanbul Branches Platform, DİSK Istanbul Representative Office, Istanbul Medical Chamber, and TMMOB Istanbul Branch called for thousands of people to gather in Taksim Square.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük Taksim'de anıldı|url=http://t24.com.tr/haber/taksimde-ethem-sarisuluk-anmasi,232764|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=T24|publisher=t24.com.tr|date=26 June 2013|language=Turkish}}

His elder brother, Mustafa Sarısülük, was a nominee from HDP at the November 2015 Turkish general election to represent Ankara's 2nd district.{{cite web | url = http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/30111193.asp | title = HDP listesinde iki büyük sürpriz | date = 18 September 2015 | publisher = Hürriyet | language = Turkish | accessdate = 18 September 2015 | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20151002080552/http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/30111193.asp | archivedate = 2 October 2015 | url-status = live }}{{cite web | url = http://www.timeturk.com/hdp-milletvekili-aday-listesini-ysk-ya-sundu/haber-60325 | title = HDP, milletvekili aday listesini YSK'ya sundu | date = 18 September 2015 | language = Turkish | accessdate = 18 September 2015 | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20151219212735/http://www.timeturk.com/hdp-milletvekili-aday-listesini-ysk-ya-sundu/haber-60325 | archivedate = 19 December 2015 | url-status = live }}

In July 2013, a park was named after him in the Batıkent neighborhood of Yenimahalle district in Ankara.{{cite news|title=Ankara'da 'Ethem Sarısülük Parkı'|url=http://www.radikal.com.tr/turkiye/ankarada-ethem-sarisuluk-parki-1140701/|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Radikal|publisher=radikal.com.tr|date=6 July 2013|language=Turkish}} In the same year, a library was created in his name in Mamak, Ankara.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük Kütüphanesi Açıldı|url=https://bianet.org/bianet/kultur/149424-ethem-sarisuluk-kutuphanesi-acildi|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Bianet|publisher=bianet.org|date=26 August 2013|language=Turkish}}

In 2013, Mordoğan Theater Festival in Mordoğan, İzmir, was dedicated to Ethem Sarısülük's memory.{{cite news|title=Mordoğan Tiyatro Festivali Ethem Sarısülük'e İthaf Edildi|url=http://www.mimesis-dergi.org/2013/06/mordogan-tiyatro-festivali-ethem-sarisuluke-ithaf-edildi/|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Mimesis|publisher=mimesis-dergi.org|language=Turkish}} Singer Alpay composed the song "Ethem'in Sessiz Çığlığı" in honor of Ethem Sarısülük and all those who had lost their lives during the Gezi Park protests.{{cite news|title=Alpay'dan Ethem için hüzünlü şarkı|url=http://www.radikal.com.tr/hayat/alpaydan-ethem-icin-huzunlu-sarki-1138926/|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Radikal|publisher=radikal.com.tr|date=24 June 2013|language=Turkish}} Director Gürkan Hacır also made a documentary about Ethem Sarısülük's life, titled Haziran Yangını.{{cite news|title=Bu hafta hangi filmler vizyona giriyor?|url=http://t24.com.tr/haber/bu-hafta-hangi-filmler-vizyona-giriyor,299415|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=T24|publisher=t24.com.tr|date=11 June 2015|language=Turkish}} The film was released on 12 June 2015.{{cite news|title=Ethem Sarısülük'ün hikayesi Haziran Yangını vizyonda|url=http://sinema.mynet.com/detay/haber/ethem-sarisulukun-hikayesi-haziran-yangini-vizyonda/38574|accessdate=13 July 2017|work=Mynet|publisher=mynet.com|date=12 June 2015|language=Turkish}}

{{reflist}}

{{Portal|Turkey}}{{Gezi Park protests}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sarısülük, Ethem}}

Category:1986 births

Category:Turkish activists

Category:Victims of police brutality

Category:People murdered in Turkey

Category:Deaths by firearm in Turkey

Category:2013 deaths

Category:Gezi Park protests

Category:Police brutality in Turkey