This is no longer a “workers” protest.” This is a stark class struggle.
In their protest, which has now lasted more than 12 days, the Doruk Maden workers are defending not only their rights but also their human dignity. Workers who fainted on the fifth day of the hunger strike, laborers who refused to leave the protest site despite their illness, and children who dropped out of school to stand by them… This scene is a shameful snapshot of a nation.
The words of a miner’s child sum up the harsh reality of this system in a single sentence:
“There was a screening at school, but I came to be with my dad. My dad fainted here; he’s sick. He’s been walking for days—he’s on a hunger strike.”
Anyone who remains silent in the face of these words is an accomplice to this exploitative system.
The anger echoing outside Yıldızlar SSS Holding is no coincidence. This anger is the culmination of stolen wages, stolen years, and lives treated with contempt. Workers have gone months without pay, been forced into unpaid leave, fired, and condemned to starvation. Yet people still talk about “patience” and “the law.”.
So, which law?
If a worker is not paid for their labor,
if he is forced to go on a hunger strike,
if the child sees him lying unconscious on the ground—
There is no law there. There is only the reality of class.
The words of union president Gökay Çakır drive this reality home:
“Did you think the people you employ were slaves? Pass a ‘Slave Law,’ and we’ll follow it then.”
This is no figure of speech. Today’s labor system is, in effect, a system of slavery. A worker who doesn’t get paid, has no job security, is forced to work in unhealthy conditions, and is fired on the spot if they speak up—what freedom can they possibly speak of?
The workers' demands, however, are extremely clear and legitimate:
* Unpaid wages must be paid immediately
* Workers whose compensation rights have been denied should have those rights restored
* The mandatory unpaid leave policy should be abolished
* Ensure that occupational health and safety conditions are met
* Reinstate the leading workers who were fired
* The mine should be nationalized, and job security should be guaranteed
These demands are not “radical”; they are the most basic human rights. What is radical is the failure to meet these demands.
And in this process, the responsibility lies not only with the employers but also with those who remain silent. The inadequacy of the labor movement—led by DİSK—in the face of this resistance serves to isolate the working class. A union philosophy that retreats at the class’s most critical moments creates a void rather than providing security for workers.
But this void won’t last forever.
That void is filled with resistance.
That void is filled with solidarity.
That void is filled by the renewed sense of community on the streets, in the squares, and in the mines.
The voices of solidarity that rose yesterday in Izmir, Çerkezköy, Bursa, Eskişehir, and Bilecik are a sign of this. The bonds forged in Istanbul with the forces of Labor, Peace, and Democracy are a sign of this. This resistance is growing. This anger is spreading.
And now the matter is clear:
This isn't a pay dispute,
This is a struggle for survival.
Başaran Aksu’s words reflect this determination:
“There has been no change in our resolve to resist or in our resolve to go on a hunger strike.”
This will cannot be suppressed. For it is fueled not by hunger, but by righteousness.
An open call must be made here:
If this struggle is left to fend for itself, it won’t just be the miners who lose out.
If this resistance succeeds, the miners won’t be the only ones to benefit.
That is why the call is clear:
Let’s build solidarity.
Break the silence.
See this struggle as your own.
Because ultimately, the decision that will be made is this:
Will the conglomerates win, or will the workers?
And history has shown time and again:
When workers truly rise up, no corporation can win.
Those who gathered at Kurtuluş Park at 9 a.m. today,
not just in a single action—
will stand on the side of history.