University student Seyfettin Bal, who was arrested on December 9, 2010 following a racist attack on Kurdish students at Kütahya Dumlupýnar University, has allegedly committed suicide in his barrack at Sincan F Type Prison towards morning hours yesterday. Bal's family demands an investigation into the reasons of Bal's detention and suicide.

Coming to Ankara upon the notification of Sincan F-Type Prison's administration that Bal was found dead in his barrack, Bal's family was met in Ankara by many people including BDP Provincial Co-Chair Songül Çelik, BDP provincial and district administrators, IHD Chairman Öztürk Türkdoðan and many citizens. In contradistinction to the prison administration’s allegation, prisoner Bal’s brother Faysal Bal remarked that Seyfettin had called them one day ago and said that he was good. While Bal's family appealed to Sincan Court Prosecution Office in respect of the suicide declaration on the Forensic Report, Bal's lawyers demanded a detailed autopsy report and the examination of video recordings, blood analysis and the letter claimed to written by Bal. Remarking that the Prosecution Office accepted the demands, Bal's lawyers stated that they will make a statement about the exact cause of Bal's death after the examination of the prosecution office.

'My brother was killed for being a Kurd'



Noting that Seyfettin didn't have any reasons for a suicide, brother Faysal Bal said the followings; "My brother wanted to have an education but he was prevented at the university and arrested for being a Kurdish citizen. Only one day before his death, he called us and asked my wife to take our children to his visit as he had missed them a lot. We are not convinced with the Forensic Report and we want a detailed autopsy report."

Mentioning the letter claimed to be written by Seyfettin before his suicide, Bal said; "The writing on the letter in no way belongs to my brother as I know his hand-writing. Besides, my brother was a religious boy and he was beware of God, which alone is a reason why he wouldn't kill himself. We will not accept the suicide letter. The murder of a Kurd isn't a big matter in consideration of the recent political process. We will follow hard after the case and we will reeal the truth trying all the ways possible. In addition, the suicide doesn't seem possible for a detainee who would most probably be discharged from prison after his next hearing on July 27. The AKP government will not attach importance to the murder of a Kurd while trying to destroy the people different from itself. They shall not talk about brotherhood while killing a Kurdish student."

'Reasons need to be investigated'



Stating that the cases they hear in the recent period replace the applications in the period of September 12 military coup, lawyer Sinem Çoþkun pointed out that a large number of university students are dismissed from universities without any concrete specifications. Çoþkun said; "The files of the students at Dumlupýnar University are a file of lynching. Seyfettin Bal and many other young people were arrested owing to this file. Besides, even if Seyfettin Bal killed himself, we need to question and see the reasons pushing him to suicide. Seyfettin wasn't allowed to study at university and further, he was arrested. We need to know and see the system and torture that drove him to suicide, if true as asserted. The lynch attempt on 11 students, who were beaten to hospitalize by gendarmeries at the court for demanding to give their statements in Kurdish, their mother-tongue. All these cases are related with each other. First of all, we have to see this fact."