Funeral held for university student killed in state-run dormitory elevator incident

The funeral for university student Zeren Ertaş who died in a falling elevator in her state-run dormitory was held on Oct. 27 in Istanbul with the presence of some students and political figures. Father Ertaş stated that they expected the government to punish the ones responsible for the negligence that led to the accident.

Friday October 27 2023 10:09 pm

Ferhat Yaşar / Gazete Duvar

The funeral for Zeren Ertaş was held on Oct. 27 in her hometown of İstanbul. There was a wide turnout at the funeral, with students as well as political figures attending the student’s funeral. Ertaş died on Oct. 26 as a result of an elevator incident that occurred at the state-run dormitory of the Student Loans and Dormitories Institution (KYK) of Turkey’s Aydın province.

Father Ertaş said during the funeral that “The government showed its compassion, now it should show its justice. The ones responsible should be punished. Not another child should die, not another family should be torn apart because of negligence.”

Özgür Özel, the presidential candidate for the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) was also present at the funeral.

He stated after the funeral, “Our grief is immensurable. Our sister Zeren died as a result of a series of negligences that devastated us all. We repeat her father’s call for justice.”

Özel added that they would follow the upcoming judicial process to prevent such accidents in the future.

Students had repeatedly reported the elevator that had crashed at the state-run dormitory in Aydın. The accident incited Turkey-wide protests, where students living in state-run dormitories around the country mourned Ertaş and protested poor living conditions in the dormitories.

(English version by Ayşenaz Toptaş)