At the fifth anniversary of the massacre in Roboskî, we wanted to remind everyone of the stories of the 36 people.

34 people from Roboski and Bujeh villages of Şırnak’s Uludere district, 28 of them from the same family, were massacred by bombs from Turkish jet fighters on December 28, 2011.

As the fifth anniversary of the massacre draws close, those responsible for the massacre are still in the dark. At a time when deaths are reduced to numbers, we as the ANF will remind you of the stories of those murdered in Roboskî.

SALİH ENCÜ

Salih was born in a family of 7. He was barely 18, he went to border so his two brothers could go to school. His family was also poor, like the others. Salih’s father had stepped on a mine 14 years ago, which left him disabled. His father’s medical bills and the family’s living costs in general were all Salih’s responsibility.

He had followed his 37 friends. They marched toward the 38 bombs together. They were caught in the light his friends spoke of together.

“Everybody’s fathers were there, except for mine. That was one time in the parent-teacher meeting in the school. I had forgotten that day, just like this day. My father had one leg, he couldn’t come all that way.”

SEYİTHAN ENÇ

Seyithan Enç was born in 1990. He used to do very well in school. He had gone to Istanbul to work, but couldn’t stay there too long and returned to his village. He had a girlfriend in the next village. When her family pushed that he complete his military service before they can get married, he left for the army. Seyithan meant to get married when he came back, but there was no money and no chance. Now, all that’s left of him are some kind words, one photograph, broken dreams and a mother and siblings all with their heads down.

MUHAMMED ENCÜ

Muhammed was the eldest son and the brother of 13 people. His family was also poor like the others.

He dreamed of becoming a vet. He loved the animals his father kept, especially the mules because they looked like horses. His biggest dream was to get a horse.

He was heartbroken when animals in the village injured themselves, and he did everything he could to treat them. He wanted to be a vet for the animals in the village, because he was affected deeply when they died of diseases in the winter.

CİHAN ENCÜ

Cihan was one out of the six boys in a family of 7 children. He was murdered 3 days before his birthday. He used to love school, but had had to quit before highschool.

There was a tumor in his father’s brain and it was getting worse. Hospitals, doctors, tests, drugs... went on for 3 years, he was unable to get out of bed in the last year of his life.

Cihan turned 15 without a father. Then he lost his mother in a traffic accident. Cihan was left an orphan, with his brothers and sister. Cihan was left fatherless at 15, motherless at 18, and he was buried before he turned 20.

SELMAN ENCÜ

Selman was the youngest of six siblings. He was orphaned in the womb and his troubles started early. From the day he came into the world, he felt the loss of his father in his heart.

Surviving the ’90s meant either migrating from Roboskî or staying and becoming a village guard. Migration was a thousand-fold anguish. Even worse for a family without a father. So they couldn’t go. They became village guards.

Selman’s first daughter Esra was born with a mental disability. Around the same time his wife fell ill, she could barely walk.

He had built a home for the family, and he had some debts. What happens to people there who have debts happened to him too, soon he was taking off for the border.

A disabled mother with a child in her lap, two children with mental disabilities, and 11 year old Ersin were left out in the cold after Selman Encü was murdered.

Ersin was in the 4th grade. He quit school after the incident, he kept on running back home.

MEHMET ALİ TOSUN

Mehmet Ali was born in 1987 in Roboskî’s sister village Gülyazı. He was the second among 11 children. Eleven siblings means eleven times the hope: If you fall short, there are ten others to cover up for you. After highschool, he couldn’t continue. He took to the border route to look after his family. Then the fateful day came. Mehmet Ali spoke on the phone with his father that day, he himself wasn’t home. He followed Nevzat, Şervan and Osman into his last journey.

ERKAN ENCÜ

Erkan’s father was a village guard, he stepped on a mine and lost both of his eyes. Erkan was only at the 7th grade. He dreamt of becoming a doctor to fix his father’s eyes.

They had a football team, they named it Kartal (Eagle) Sports. Their jerseys were black, red and white, newly made. Erkan had the number 4.

The money his father made from the state wasn’t enough. He used to insist for permission to go smuggling.

That night was Erkan’s second time smuggling, along with two of his uncles. One of them, Hüsnü who passed away longing for his unborn baby. The other uncle was Savaş, they were the same age. His mother made him wear two pairs of gloves so his hands wouldn’t get cold.

SAVAŞ ENCÜ

Savaş was one of 11 orphans. He was only just realizing he had been born in a war zone, and had hoped maybe he could change his name, which means “war” in Turkish, after the fate of these lands changed.

The poverty that killed so many dreams didn’t let Savaş go either. He had to quit school in 2010.

His brother Vahit had bought him a pair of gloves that day, so he wouldn’t be cold. He put them on and took the road following the 34. It’s not easy to go for the border in winter, especially when it’s snowy and muddy.

KARKER ENCÜ

Karker was a shepherd, an apprentice and a smuggler. What he has in common with the others is poverty. He left the village to work, but being away was too much for him and he returned home. He couldn’t return from the border he left for either. We don’t know much about him. But the mourning he left behind is heavy.

SELAHATTİN ENCÜ

He was one of the last to be buried. His story is also filled with poverty and suffering. He didn’t even have a photograph.

NEVZAT ENCÜ

19 year old Nevzat and his father bore the weight of a household on their shoulders.

He had one more year in school, then he was hoping to get into a good department in a good university. He wanted to learn a good profession to provide his family with a good life.

The weight of poverty and misery falls early on shoulders. Among the 34, there were those who should have listened to a bedtime story and slept. Five of them were 13 year old boys.

MAHSUN ENCÜ

Mahsun was one of the people who made a living out of the border, which was defined by a single stone.

He was 17. His dreams were also cut short. He wanted to be a doctor because there were no doctors in the village clinic.

BİLAL ENCÜ

Bilal was the eldest of 7 siblings. He was 16. He carried the weight of the household. Bilal’s father was blind, so he was everything to the family. He also wanted to be a doctor, because the closest doctor was 60 km from the village. He loved football and he played very well. He liked watering the saplings he planted in his garden. He spoke to his trees. He told them all of his secrets. When he left, one sack on his mule was filled with poverty and the other with hope.

HÜSNÜ ENCÜ

Hüsnü was one of those who made a living out of the border. He was born in 1981 as the 4th child of a family of 11 children. He was killed together with his brother. He left behind a family he used to take care of and his incomplete story.