site.btaTurkish Parliament Rejects Motion to Investigate Suspicious Death of Female Student

The Grand National Assembly of Turkiye Wednesday rejected a motion for an investigation by an ad hoc parliamentary committee of the suspicious death of 21-year old student Rojin Kabais, who was found dead on the shore of Lake Van in October 2024, according to the online publication Turkish Minute. The motion was tabled by the pro-Kurdish opposition Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) and was rejected by Turkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its far-right ally, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).

The body of the 21-year-old student was found 18 days after her disappearance in late September 2024. The cause of death was initially classified as a suicide, a conclusion her family and women rights activists have long disputed. The case resurfaced after a new forensic report dated October 10 revealed that DNA samples from two different men had been found on Kabais' body, raising renewed suspicions of sexual assault.

The person who tabled the motion, MP Oznur Bartin, said she suspected that information was being withheld and the investigation obstructed, and asked who was being protected. The largest opposition party in the Turkish Parliament, the Republican People's Party (CHP), accused the judicial authorities of neglecting the case. The Good Party (Iyi Parti), in turn, described the case as "a test of Turkiye's conscience." 

MP Adem Yildirim of the ruling AKP said that the case could be examined by the existing parliamentary committee on violence against women. He also stated that every suspicious death should be treated in the same way, regardless of whether it is a man or a woman, provoking sharp reactions.

According to the Anadolu Agency, Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc also commented on the case, emphasizing that all expert reports and evidence are being thoroughly reviewed. 

The online publication Turkiye Today reported that the case had sparked protests by organizations fighting for the rights of women and students in Van. Thousands of people took to the streets to demand an objective investigation. Kabais' family also insists on this and believes that the suicide version contradicts the established facts. 

Turkish Minute reported that claims are circulating on social media that the rector of Van Yuzuncu Yıl University, where Kabais was a student, has obstructed efforts to clarify the circumstances surrounding her death, which has once again fueled public criticism of the university's leadership.  

According to data from the We Will Stop Femicide Platform, the leading women's rights organization in Turkiye, at least 384 women were killed in the country in 2024.