On December 28, 2011, 34 people from Roboskî and Bujeh villages in Şırnak’s Uludere district, 28 of them from the same family, were murdered by the bombs from Turkish jet fighters.

At the fifth anniversary of the massacre, the perpetrators are still left in the dark. At a time when deaths are reduced to mere numbers, we in the ANF would like to remind everyone of the people who were murdered in Roboskî and their stories.

ŞERAFETTİN ENCÜ

Şerafettin Encü was born in the green valley that is the embrace between Beyaztepe and Mount Düğün on a summer’s day. He is the eldest in a family of 7 children. Şerafettin grew up in poverty, and was orphaned when he lost his mother when he was 12. He did so well in school that his teachers were proud of him. He had dreams beyond his years. He wanted to be a teacher with many many students, or a principal for a village school with a playground. He wanted to raise new life. He was young but his dreams were as big as his heart. Şerafettin was the proud son of a poor family. He left his childhood behind and started dealing in border trade with his father to take care of his six brothers. The story of 18 year old Şerafettin, born on a summer’s day, ended on a smuggling route on a winter’s day. The snow turned red with the blood of Şerafettin the Orphan, one teenager among 34 people.

ŞİRVAN ENCÜ

Second of nine siblings, the first boy, Şirvan Encü was 19 years old. He loved sleep, so he wasn’t all that into school. He dreamed of being a truck driver like his father. He was the apple of his father’s eye, and was told constantly that “driving a truck is taking on long distances, you can’t do it if you love sleeping. You have to give up on your sleep or driving.” Şirvan gave up both. One morning when his father wasn’t home, he pushed hard and convinced his mother to go on the border trade with his cousin Nevzat. Şirvan had a soulful voice, and sang klams (ballad) to his companions all the way through. He was one of the 34 people massacred in that night with the white earth and the black skies. His mother says, “I still hear his voice in my head”.

FADIL ENCÜ

Newly turned 20, Fadıl Encü was the eldest in a family of 8 children. He lived a life of poverty with his family, so he took on the border trade to maybe enable the dreams of his 7 siblings. When his father was in the army, the family went through a hard time when he fell ill. Just for that, every time he left for work, he somberly said farewell to his mother and his family. The villagers described him as very humble and genial. He still had the football jersey on him from the football match they held among friends before going out for trade. He took the road with his friends Celal and Serhat, as if going to a wedding. In the pitch black night, the colors of his jersey disappeared. His 20 year old young body was so deformed that his father walked across his body four times before he recognized him.

VEDAT ENCÜ

His family lived abroad for a long time, but returned to Roboskî eventually because they wer too homesick. His father loved Vedat Aydın so much that he named him after him. Vedat was 17 and his favorite topic in school was math, he held on to math because his mother tongue isn’t recognized in schools - you don’t need language to solve math problems. He thought of himself as the doctor character in Apê Musa’s Brina Reş novel. The son of a poor but proud family, Vedat wanted to be a doctor just like the character in the book. He would go on to be a great man, and take care of his mother and siblings so well. He was murdered along with 34 people in that fateful night.

ORHAN ENCÜ

He was the youngest in a big, poor and grieving family. 13 year old Orhan was a joker, a cheerful boy and the source of joy in the home. He was very smart, so he started school early. He always had good grades. Ten months earlier, he had lost his mother. Orhan wanted to be a computer engineer and started going on border trade with his brother Zeydan to buy a computer. He loved nature and animals and kept a few puppies in the front yard of their home. His dogs ran to the field of death alongside his father when the news broke in the dark night. He and his brother Zeydan were two out of the 34.

ŞİVAN ENCÜ

Şivan Encü was orphaned at a young age. He searched for his mother’s scent in dreams for years. And then three years earlier, he found out his mother was alive and came to Roboskî to be with his mother and siblings. Şivan became the eldest male in a family with 4 children. He supported his family for three years, working as a shepherd, a porter, a digger, or a smuggler - whatever he could find. One day he came home after working the full day as a shepherd for 15 liras, tired and his hands, nose and ears frostbitten. Before he could rest, his cousing Berdan came: “Come on!” They took to the smuggling path. On their way back, bombs bigger than them were dropped on them.

ZEYDAN ENCÜ

Zeydan was a child of a big and poor family. He was only able to study until high school. He did all he could so his brother Orhan could study. He was a porter, a field hand and a smuggler. As if smuggling and poverty are fate for that land, he never was able to let go of the mule’s leash. He looked tough, and had the softest heart. Shortly after he returned from the army, he lost his sick mom. He took the smuggling path that night so his brother Orhan wouldn’t have to delay his dream of a computer any longer. All he wanted that night was to take his brother back home safe and lie down next to the roaring hearth. But he couldn’t - both brothers died under the bombs.

ÖZCAN UYSAL

Özcan was 19 and he was a fan of Ahmet Kaya. He loved the herbed cheese, the smuggled tea and all soulful strans. His cousin was to get married after the smuggling, he was preparing for that in his last days. He never returned from the border. Everybody who knew him knew he wanted to get married.

OSMAN KAPLAN

Osman got married in 1999, and had 3 boys and 2 girls between ages 5 and 11. He started going to the border in 2002. Every time he went, his wife Pakize and his children waited up for him. His 5 year old still thinks he’s out in Şırnak, buying some things for the house. Pakize wasn’t told what happened at first. But when people couldn’t identify the bodies, they called her and asked what kind of clothes and shoes Osman was wearing that day. That was how Osman’s wife and children learned he was dead.

NADİR ALMA

Nadir was the second child of a family with 13 children. Their life was also one of poverty. Nadir always had the seat of honor at the family table. He was shy and simple. His best friend’s name was Hikmet. The two carried all the weight of the family. The only thing they could do in Roboskî was to go out smuggling.

That night the mules were once more loaded with poverty and hope. Nadir had two brothers in the army and they had no money. He needed pocket money for them, and some supplies for the home. Then it would be time for him to get married, like his mother wanted for so long. Held up by poverty and fatigue, his body fell on the snow like so many shooting stars.