People booted from state jobs by emergency decrees facing serious financial troubles

Hacı Bişkin/ DUVAR

Mesut Kuran is a doctor who was dismissed from his post by a decree during the extended period of state of emergency that followed the failed July 2016 coup attempt. Kuran was involved in a car accident with another dismissed employee, Hüseyin Bakır, and their insurance company refused to pay for the damages. Suzan Uzpak, a teacher who also lost her job in the same way, was denied a bank transfer. Meanwhile, Ilker Okatan, another public employee dismissed by an official decree, was denied a bank loan on the basis of his persona non grata status. 

Okatan tried to get a loan of 20,000 TL from a bank in the city of Eskişehir, and he received a positive response regarding his request. But later, he was told by the bank's management that since was an employee dismissed by decree, his loan would not be granted.

“This situation is not unique to me, there are 135,000 people victimized due to being dismissed by decree. If they want a job they can't find one, there aren't any friends who can loan you money, if you want to get insurance they say 'I can't get it for you, don't bring me trouble'. If you want to establish a business and want a loan they won't give it to you, Okatan said. 

Okatan lamented the fact that after he was booted from his job, there were no groceries in the house, and that he was unable to give his children their allowance. 

“My young daughter loves honey and asked one day for me to get it. We said we would, but without knowing how. Forget honey, we have difficulty buying bread,” Okatan said, adding that a friend two days later returned to their hometown and gave them a large amount of honey that lasted for two months. 

Fired police officer Hüseyin Baktır said that he could not make his insurance payments due to the fact that he was dismissed from his job by the state decree. 

“I was fired and imprisoned. I was never an enemy of the state but now I am upset. Most of the people fired from their jobs by decree said they aren't cross with the state but I'm not saying that. Even if the opportunity arose I'm not thinking about returning to my job. This is because of the applications that I made that resulted in the loss of my rights,” Baktır said. 

Ömer Özdemir, another state employee fired by decree, said that when he tried to open a bank account, he was only allowed to have his salary transferred, and was denied other rights including online banking due to his status. 

“Turn back from this mistake,” said pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) Deputy Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, calling on the companies who are discriminating against the state employees fired by the government.