Diyarbakır Bar Head and human rights lawyer Tahir Elçi was remembered in Diyarbakır, on the street where he was shot to death, within the Lawyers' Day events on April 5.

Türkan Elçi, wife of Tahir Elçi arrived to the crime scene for the first time within the commemoration event, however burst into tears and left the street before she was able to leave red cloves.

Tahir Elçi, the Diyarbakır Bar Association head was allegedly killed during clashes that erupted after the killing of two police officers by gunmen on Nov. 28, 2015 in Diyarbakır’s Sur district. The case remains unclear while investigations continue to find the murderer.

Several MPs of opposition parties including Republican People’s Party (CHP) Deputy Sezgin Tanrıkulu and Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) MPs Mithat Sancar and Meral Danış Beştaş attended the commemoration, along with many lawyers.

The MPs had to step up and negociate with police officers, after they were told that any events and press statements in the Sur district were banned. After Diyarbakır Mayor Hüseyin Aksoy intervened, the event was held near the Yıkıkkaya Street.

Elçi’s efforts to peacefully solve Kurdish issue “did not find a partner”

The lawyers were able to enter the street where Elçi was slaughtered for the first time, due to chain of curfews in the region, said Diyarbakır Bar Deputy Chairman Ahmet Özmen. Özmen underscored Elçi’s efforts “until his last breath”, to find a resolution for the Kurdish problem in Turkey, in “democratic and peaceful ways”.

However, since the day Elçi was killed, the clashes have resurged, while spreading to city centers in Turkey’s southeast, said Özmen. “Unfortunately, peace efforts that our president pointed to and died for have not found a partner” he said.

Deputy Chairman of Diyarbakır Bar called on authorities to “silence guns, and resume the dialogue and negotiation processes” to solve the problems in peaceful ways, while involving the “democratic politics” in the Kurdish issue. He also slammed the detention of academics who supported a “peace petition” criticizing the military operations in Turkey’s southeast.