Turkish student claims dorm expulsion was due to name

Turkish student claims dorm expulsion was due to name

ISTANBUL

Hürriyet Daily News Photo.

Normal 0 21 false false false TR X-NONE X-NONE

A university student has said she was expelled from a dormitory at Ankara’s Hacettepe University following a protest over last year’s Uludere massacre due to her Kurdish first name, daily Radikal reported today.

The student, Hevi Akgül, said she was spending time with her friends and did not attend the Jan. 5 protest against the botched air raid that killed 34 villagers in southeastern Turkey on Dec. 28, 2011.

Police alleged that Akgül participated in the protest solely on the basis of her Turkish identity number although law enforcement officers did not provide any footage or photographic evidence proving her presence at the demonstration.

The dormitory administration, however, expelled her from the dorm on the basis of the police report.

The Loans and Dormitories Directorate also suspended Akgül's education loans on account of her expulsion from the student housing.

Akgül has filed a case to overturn the decision.