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Three children and three women were killed in a fire at an unlicensed cosmetics workshop in Dilovası, Kocaeli. The workshop had previously been reported for employing child and uninsured workers. Its owner was caught while trying to flee. According to the Health and Safety Labour Watch, 76 child workers have died in workplace accidents so far in 2025 — the highest number on record, surpassing 71 in 2024.
The governor and mayor who came to offer condolences after the Dilovası fire were met with protests and forced to leave:
“You should be in prison, not here.”
In Istanbul, four people protesting the workplace murders were detained.
In the case of 11-year-old Syrian child worker Ahmet Haskiro, who died after getting trapped in an elevator at the atelier he worked at, the bosses were only heard as “witnesses.” The building manager and elevator technician received light penalties, and no one will go to prison for his death.
Former HDP MP Hüda Kaya was sent to prison on Monday (November 3), to serve an 18-month sentence for “having a cell phone in her bag” after a visit to her son, who was arrested in 2022. She was released later that evening after the court ruled that the February 28 conviction was invalid and decided her sentence would be served under supervision.
Salih Aybar, imprisoned in 2023 on charges of ‘violence against women,’ ‘attempted murder,’ and ‘threats’ against Nermin Tirit, was released on October 22. Twelve days later, he shot and killed Tirit in the garden of her apartment complex in Erzurum’s Yakutiye district, then took his own life.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) rejected Turkey’s appeal against the release of Selahattin Demirtaş, the imprisoned former HDP co-chair. The court found violations of the rights to ‘freedom and security,’ ‘a trial within a reasonable time,’ ‘judicial review,’ and protection against ‘abuse of rights under the Convention,’ and ordered Turkey to pay Demirtaş €35,000 in moral damages and €20,000 in court costs.
Özgür Özel apologized for the main opposition party CHP’s role in passing a parliamentary immunity bill in 2016 that led to the arrest of many HDP politicians, including Selahattin Demirtaş.
The Istanbul 49th Criminal Court of First Instance, reviewing the case against Manifest for “indecent exposure” without a court appearance, lifted the signature requirement for group members but kept the travel ban in place.
As preparations for the 11th Judicial Package near completion, it is reported that sections concerning LGBT+ people were removed following public backlash. Activists remain cautious but see this retreat as a win for their cause.
Compiled @bawerella
Translated by @mercanbaska
