Gokhan Acikkollu was detained and tortured systematically for 13 days; he went into a coma twice; he was not given sugar pills that his family provided to the Police Department; he could not stand the severe torture and abuse and died  of a heart attack.

He was only a teacher, after all. After the insanity of July 15, he was arrested. He couldn’t take the constant torment and pressure any longer. His medication was not supplied to him since he was diabetic. In police detention, he died of a heart attack in the early morning hours of August 5, 2016.

The portrait of history teacher Gokhan Ackkolu, who died of cancer, is one of the most unique and historically significant documents in the Tenkil Museum displays.

Gökhan Açıkkollu, from KHK, died of a heart attack three years ago, on August 5, 2016, at 04:19  a.m., in the C-3 Detention House in the basement of the Istanbul Police Department. Despite the  heart message made by wardmates, one of whom was a professor, he could not be saved.

According to a report written after his death by Forensic Medicine Specialist Sebnem Korur Fincanci, Gokhan Ackkollu suffered from a crisis as a result of torture and not being provided diabetes meds (he was also a diabetic and panic attack sufferer). He was transported to the hospital from prison 1-2 times before he died because he had a diabetes crisis.

Gokhan Ackkollu, who was beaten and jailed on the basis that he was a member of the organization on July 24, 2016, despite slipping into a sugar coma at home, was tortured relentlessly for 13 days at the Istanbul Security Directorate.

After his death, his family filed a complaint against the torturers. However, the prosecutor’s office closed the torture investigation with the decision “There is no need for prosecution”.

His wife, Mumine Tulay Acıkkollu, revealed the documents proving the torture one by one. The detainees at the same time as Acıkkollu stated that they wanted to witness the torture with official petitions. They said, “We are witness with 15 people that Gokhan Acıkkollu was beaten to death.

The prosecutor did not listen to any of these witnesses. Camera recordings showing that Acıkkollu was brought half unconscious from torture were extracted and placed in the file. The footage was 13 hours long. While the lawyers wanted all the records, the prosecutor only put the footage of the heart attack moment of 1 hour and 25 minutes in the case file.

These images, published by BOLD Media, founded by exiled journalists in Germany, on 5 August 2019, the 3rd anniversary of Gökhan Açıkkollu’s death, prove the negligence of Açıkkollu in his death and how he was dragged to death by torture.

In the footage, it is seen that Acikkollu was held in a single-person cell with 5 people, sleeping in the same bed with three people, and asking for help from the police for several minutes at the onset of the crisis, but no help came. Desperately returning to his bed, Acikkollu had a crisis after a while, he was taken out of the ward into the corridor and then died.

In addition to these images, the exhibition includes the young teacher’s glasses, which were broken by torture, and the shirt, sweatpants and shoes he wore when he had a crisis. While delivering his clothes to his wife, Mumine Acikkollu attaches a small note to the pocket of her tracksuit: “We love you very much. Don’t worry about us.

Take care of yourself. your family”02:00 o’clock”,. The piece of paper with the inscription dated 28 July 2016, appeared while this exhibition was being prepared, and the bitter wife went back to those days and experienced very emotional moments.

She explained how she got her husband’s broken glasses from the Istanbul Police Department as follows: “I called the Anti-Terrorism Branch and said that I wanted to receive my husband’s remaining belongings. I was going to experience another destruction while receiving the items. Because none of the medicines which I could take for 4 days after my husband was taken into custody were used. They gave it all back to me. Moreover, my husban’s glasses were not among the items delivered. I wanted the glasses. They said they couldn’t find it.They threw it in the trash. I signed an annotation stating that they did not give glasses to the goods delivery report. As a result of this comment, I had a big argument with the police officers. They said that I could not make an annotation and that I had to re-sign the paper. I did not accept it and took the goods with the documents that I had annotated and left. They called 10 minutes after I left and said they found the glasses and I could come back and pick them up. I went back and removed the annotation and received the glasses.”

Gokhan Acikkkollu lost his life. His wife, children, mother, and father suffered great destruction. But what was done was not over. Problems started when Acikkollu’s funeral was in the morgue of Istanbul Forensic Medicine. They said that they would bury the body in a ‘traitor’s graveyard’ with a body bag without any religious requirements being met.

After July 15, a special cemetery was built in Istanbul for those alleged to have committed the coup, and the sign “Traitors Cemetery” was placed on its door. Gokhan Acikkollu’s family did not accept this. They said that they wanted to bury him in their hometown, Konya. This time, forensic scientists said that they would not spray the body. Then the hearse was not given.

The family handled all of this on their own. Before his burial, Mumine Acikkollu requested that samples be taken from her husband’s nails and hair. In case it’s necessary to do an autopsy again in the future… But his nails were cut so deeply that there was no evidence of torture, they had a very difficult time getting a patch.

In February 2018, Mumine Acikkollu received a phone call that shocked her. The caller was the principal of her husban’s school. The manager was saying that Gokhan Acikkollu was being reinstated to his job and was telling her to come and get his document. A teacher who was declared a terrorist and traitor by the state was thus acquitted by the state. But it was too late now… Even though people of all opinions reacted to this event in Turkey, it was too late.

Mumine Acikkollu struggled to publicize what was done to her husband. She was detained a few days before she met with New York Times reporters who had come to Turkey for an interview. Acikkollu, who was released after giving her statement to the prosecutor, decided to leave his country that day. Together with her children, they made a difficult journey to the Maritza River, but they were able to cross the shore unharmed. Now she tries to hold on to their new life in a European country with her children Zeynep and Fatih.

PERSONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS

Name-Surname: Gökhan Açıkkollu

Date of Birth: April 1, 1974

Age: 42

Gender: Male

Marital Status: Married

Wife’s Name: Mumine Tulay Acikkollu

Children’s Names:

Murat Fatih Acikkollu,

Zeynep Munise Acikkollu

Educational Status-School-Graduation Date: Undergraduate

Professional Achievements and Background: 19 years history teacher*

Worked Institution-Institution: Ümraniye Atatürk Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School History teacher

Suspension Decision and Date:

Decree of Decree and Date: Decree No. 667, 19 July 2016

Other documents: The letter of reinstatement of Acikkollu, the teacher of the Ministry of National Education numbered E.2561776, dated 7 February 2018.

DETENTION PROCESS

City of Detention: Istanbul

Detained Police Unit: Istanbul Police Department Anti-Terrorism Directorate (TEM)

Detention Period: 13 days

Violations of Rights During the Detention Process: Violence, witnessed by the site administrator, was used by the police, who raided the house of detention, to such an extent that the site administrator said, “I can’t stand it, I don’t want to look at it any more”.

He was interrogated by lying facedown with his hands cuffed behind his back. Acikkollu, who has severe panic attacks and diabetes, had a crisis as a result.

According to the recorded doctor’s report, the assault continued in the car.

Acikkollu’s glasses were broken as violence and torture were systematically applied during the detention process.

Degrading torture was applied with baton.

He was taken to Haseki Hospital several times as a result of his coma.

On the day he died, he was taken back for questioning and tortured, and when he was brought to the detention center holding his chest, he told his friends that his chest hurt a lot. He died of a heart attack the same night as a result of 13 days of torture.

Place of Death: Istanbul, Istanbul Police Department Vatan Police Building C-3 detention center

Cause of Death: Torture

Diseases: Diabetes, panic attacks

Torture and Ill-Treatment Detection:

It is registered with the Forensic Medicine reports,the doctor’s examination reports and the statements of his friends in custody that he was tortured.

Other documents and reports:

Prof. dr. Sebnem Korur Fincanci’s report.

A petition written by Emrah Bicer that Acikkollu was tortured to death.

Autopsy Status: Done. There is the Forensic Medicine Institute Autopsy Report. In addition there is an autopsy report prepared by Prof.Dr. Sebnem Korur Fincanci on behalf of the Human Rights Foundation  .

Persons and Institutions Responsible for His Death:

Ministry of Interior,

Ministry of Justice,

AKP government (Recep Tayyip Erdogan and cabinet members with signing authority in the ‘Witch Hunt’ process),

Istanbul Police Department TEM Branch officials,

Doctors who prepared ‘detention extension reports’ at Bayrampasa State Hospital and Haseki Research Hospital,

Istanbul Public Prosecutor Burhan Gorgulu and other members of the judiciary involved, who decided that there was “no need for prosecution”.

Action About Responsible Persons:

Despite his family’s follow-up and investigation request, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office closed the case with the decision “There is no room for prosecution”.