A senior opposition lawmaker asked Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu why money collected for families of people killed or wounded during Turkey’s 2016 coup attempt and a deadly 2016 İstanbul stadium bombing had not been distributed directly to them, accusing the minister of using the dead in political rhetoric while avoiding questions about the funds.
Engin Özkoç, deputy parliamentary group chair of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), raised the issue during Turkish parliament’s Planning and Budget Committee discussions on the Interior Ministry’s 2020 final accounts and 2022 budget.
“While the minister was speaking, I tried to listen carefully, but I couldn’t help smiling when there were false statements,” Özkoç said.
“You speak about those killed and use them as a political tool,” he said, addressing Soylu.
Özkoç said 306 million lira had been collected under an order by then-prime minister Binali Yıldırım for the families of people killed during the July 15, 2016 attempted military takeover and asked why the money had not been given to them.
“If your heart aches even a little for those killed during Turkey’s July 15, 2016 coup attempt, why didn’t you give the 306 million lira collected under Mr. Binali Yıldırım’s order to their families, and why haven’t you said a single word about it?” Özkoç said.
The Prime Ministry launched a national aid campaign after the coup attempt for families of those killed and for people wounded during the events. Contemporary reports and later parliamentary questions put the amount collected at around 309 million lira, while Özkoç referred to 306 million lira in his remarks.
Özkoç also cited money collected after the December 2016 twin bombings outside a soccer stadium in İstanbul’s Beşiktaş district, an attack that killed dozens of people, most of them police officers.
“You are the head of the police force, the person who should protect them,” Özkoç said. “Seven civilians and 47 police officers were killed by terrorist organizations in Beşiktaş. A total of 52 million lira was collected. Even though there are relatives of slain police officers who had to sell their homes, why aren’t you making an effort to ensure that money is given to them?”
The Beşiktaş donations had already become a subject of public dispute. Turkish media reported in 2019 that 52 million lira collected after the attack was to be transferred to the Turkey Martyrs’ Relatives and Veterans Solidarity Foundation, the same foundation created after the coup attempt to handle support payments.
The foundation says it was established under a 2018 law and gained legal personality in July 2019.
Government statements have said the foundation makes regular monthly payments to eligible families and veterans. The Ministry of Family and Social Services said in April 2021 that monthly support had been raised to 1,500 lira and that more than 40 million lira had been paid by that point.
That explanation has not ended criticism from victims’ relatives and opposition figures, who have questioned why money collected in their names was not distributed directly and transparently.
Özkoç’s remarks framed the dispute as an accountability issue for Soylu, whose ministry oversees Turkey’s police force and frequently invokes the deaths of security personnel in political debates.
“You need to explain this to the nation,” Özkoç said.
