Victims of Sivas Massacre remembered on 30th anniversary

SİVAS

Hundreds of people marched on July 2 to commemorate the victims of an arson attack in which 33 intellectuals and two hotel personnel lost their lives in the Central Anatolian province of Sivas on the 30th anniversary of the massacre.

The Sivas Massacre, an arson attack staged on mostly Alevi intellectuals inside the Madımak Hotel, was remembered with an official ceremony attended by hundreds of people, including Sivas Governor Yılmaz Şimşek, who marched to the Madımak Hotel, where the incident took place and now used as a science and cultural center.

A group of people left carnations in the memorial corner inside the building, which displays the names of those who lost their lives on July 2, 1993.

“Today is July 2, marking the 30th anniversary of the tragic incident that occurred in this place. This pain is not only Sivas’ but the pain of the entire Türkiye,” Şimşek said during his speech at the ceremony.

“These lands have always been lands of peace and tolerance for centuries. People of different beliefs and sects have lived together as brothers and sisters. Our poets such as Aşık Veysel, Pir Sultan Abdal, and Ruhsati, who have lived in these lands and become the voice of these lands, have always conveyed messages of peace, tolerance, and love to us and have always given us these teachings,” Şimşek added.

Hasan Sezgin, the deputy chairman of the Cem Foundation, an Alevi organization, also stated the hotel building, which is currently used as a science and cultural center, should be turned into a museum to honor the victims.

The attack against the hotel on July 2, 1993, targeted a group of intellectuals participating in a conference organized by the PSAKD, an Alevi organization.

The participants of the conference were accused of being “infidels” by the large crowd outside, who had been provoked to action by a number of local political leaders.

While 33 people attending the conference died in the fire, two hotel personnel also lost their lives alongside them.