Court issues verdict on child who died at school
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
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The family of a child killed in an accident at his school two years ago has been granted 275,000 Turkish Liras in compensation by Istanbul’s 6th Administrative Court.Efe Boz, a 6-year-old kindergarten student, died in a freak accident at his school in Istanbul’s Maltepe district in 2010. Boz had gone to use the school’s washroom when the sink fell onto him, smashing into pieces and cutting the child’s throat. His family filed a lawsuit against the National Education Ministry and Istanbul Governor’s Office following the incident.
The court found the Istanbul Governor’s Office and National Education Ministry guilty and ruled that they pay 275,000 liras in compensation to the child’s family. If the court decision, which indicates administrative responsibility, is not reversed, it will set a precedent for other cases.
In a statement issued after the ruling, Boz’s mother Nurdan Boz said, “It will set a precedent for all cases about other children who lost their lives under the roof of a school building. Unfortunately, 26 other children lost their lives over the last three years [in that way].”
“When this case was first opened the National Education Ministry and Istanbul Governor’s Office defended themselves saying, ‘Efe died because of his own carelessness; Efe was a mischievous child.’ My son died after 22 minutes of agony just because of a lack of safety measures. But no one heard about it. No child deserves to die in that way,” Boz’s mother said.
