Pelin Çetinkaya-Derya Ren:

 

Amed – Fahriye Çukur, mother of Rozerin Çukur, participated in the two-day meeting 'The Road to Peace: Memory and Justice”, organised by the Human Rights Association (İHD), said: “We want peace. Prisoners need to be released. Let's focus on the future. Those who left are gone. I wanted peace when I buried my daughter. Why shouldn't I ask for peace today?'

 

The Human Rights Association (IHD) organised a meeting for the families of soldiers who lost their lives in clashes, the families of the disappeared, the families of those who lost their lives during curfews, the families of those killed in the Roboskî massacre, and the families of PKK members. The meeting was called "The Road to Peace: Memory and Justice". The Human Rights Association (IHD) Co-Chairs Eren Keskin and Hüseyin Küçükbalaban and the IHD Honorary President Akın Birdal also attended the meeting, which was held in a hotel in the Yenişehir district of Amed. During the two-day conference, families who lost relatives during the conflict shared their stories, while civil society organisations discussed the issue. The Amed Peace Mothers' Assembly also distributed white handkerchiefs to participants.

 

Among those in attendance was Fahriye Çukur, whose daughter Rozerin was killed by snipers during the 2015–16 Amed curfews when she was only 16 years old. The conference addressed important topics such as peace and unity.

 

Fahriye Çukur also spoke at the conference.

 

"I bear no grudge against the families of soldiers."

 

Fahriye Çukur said that they had been waiting for a peace process like this for years, and that confrontation was also needed as part of the process. She added: "I have no grudge against the soldiers' families. I want peace. It wasn't a person who killed us; we know very well who killed us. My child was unarmed; my daughter was a student. She had a paper and a pen in her hand and a school bag on her back."

 

"I have been calling for peace for 10 years."

 

Fahriye Çukur talked about what happened during the self-governance process in Sur, explaining how her daughter was massacred. She added that her daughter was wearing her school uniform and said: "My daughter was only 16 years old. She was a senior high school student. What can a 16-year-old child do? She was not killed in a clash; she was wearing her school uniform. There were snipers everywhere; they shot everyone who passed by on the street. Despite that, we want to embrace them. We want to make peace. I have been calling for unity for 10 years. What were our children slaughtered for? Let us all think about it."

 

'I wanted peace when I buried my daughter'

 

Fahriye Çukur, who reminded that those who were murdered did not have weapons in their hands, finally said the following "Our breath has been blocked for 10 years. We want peace. Prisoners need to be released. Let's focus on the future. The one who left is gone. I wanted peace when I took my daughter's funeral and buried her. Today I don't want peace. I have always wanted peace. We have no grudge against anyone. I'm sure all families think like this. We want to embrace all our people."