People protest Turkish PM Erdoğan in coal mine disaster

Turkish police forces have used tear gas and water cannon against hundreds of people protesting a deadly mine explosion, as public anger continues to grow in the country over the incident.

In Ankara, police resorted to tear gas and water cannon to prevent a group of Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) students from marching to the Energy Ministry to protest the mine disaster. A standoff at the entrance of the campus between students and security officers is continuing, as police are blocking the exit. 

This comes as Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived at the site of the mining disaster in western province of Manisa’s Soma town, which left at least 238 mine workers dead and more than 120 others missing.

Also, in the Turkish city, Istanbul, a number of protesters gathered at Taksim subway station in solidarity with the mine victims. “The government ignored warnings and miners paid the bill with their lives.” A group of protesters in Soma chant “Murderer state,” according to live footage from Doğan News Agency.

Erdogan issued a statement earlier in the day, announcing three days of national mourning over the deadly incident.

The explosion at the coal mine, which occurred at around 3:30 p.m. local time (1230 GMT) on May 13, is said to have been caused by an electrical fault. Turkey has long been a graveyard for miners.

Allegations of negligence against the Turkish government over safety conditions have escalated as an electrical fault at the mine the day before caused a collapse. Graves have been dug in a cemetary near the mining facility in Soma to bury the victims of the deadly explosion.

Local reports say there were at least 580 people trapped in the mine at the time of the deadly blast.

Lignite coal mining is a major industry in Turkey’s Soma. A similar incident in 1992 marked the country’s worst mining disaster in which 270 miners were killed near Zonguldak, on the Black Sea.

Source: .hurriyetdailynews.com

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