The Abdi İpekçi Peace Monument is a monument sculpted by

Gürdal Duyar Gürdal Duyar (20 August 1935 – 18 April 2004) was a Turkish sculptor who is known for his monuments to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, Atatürk and his Bust (sculpture), busts of famous people. His art is characterized as having a Modern sculpture, ...

, commissioned by the

Şişli Şişli () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 10 km2, and its population is 276,528 (2022). Located on the European side of the city, it is bordered by Beşiktaş ...

Municipality in 2000 in honor of the

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is held accoun ...

of the ''

Milliyet ''Milliyet'' ( Turkish for "''nationality''") is a daily newspaper published in Istanbul, Turkey. History and profile ''Milliyet'' came to publishing life at the Nuri Akça press in Babıali, Istanbul as a daily private newspaper on 3 May 1950 ...

'' newspaper

Abdi İpekçi Abdi İpekçi (9 August 1929 – 1 February 1979) was a Turkish journalist, intellectual and human rights activist. He was murdered when he was editor-in-chief of one of the main Turkish daily newspapers '' Milliyet'' which then had a cent ...

and erected at the place where he was assassinated in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, Turkey, in 1979. The monument, which was erected on 2000, follows the renaming of Emlak Street to

Abdi İpekçi Street Abdi İpekçi Street or Abdi İpekçi Avenue () is one of the premier shopping streets of Istanbul, Turkey, located in the Şişli district. It runs along the Maçka and Teşvikiye neighborhoods, extending from Bayıldım Caddesi/Maçka Caddesi ...

in 1979, the Abdi İpekçi Peace and Friendship Prize in 1980, and the

Abdi İpekçi Arena Abdi İpekçi Arena, formerly known as Abdi İpekçi Sports Complex, was a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the Zeytinburnu district of Istanbul, Turkey, situated just outside the ancient city walls, in Yedikule. History Designed in 197 ...

in commemorating İpekçi.

Description

The sculpture is located close to the middle of the

. The sculpture was made by the sculptor

. The

bronze sculpture Bronze is the most popular metal for Casting (metalworking), cast metal sculptures; a cast bronze sculpture is often called simply "a bronze". It can be used for statues, singly or in groups, reliefs, and small statuettes and figurines, as w ...

is tall and stands on top of a granite

plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...

. The composition of the sculpture consists of two children, a boy and a girl, holding up a bust of İpekçi. Behind the boy and girl are two columns supporting an

arch An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dates back to the 4th millennium BC, but stru ...

, on top of which there is a dove that represents peace. The monument is located near the location of

's former house at the place where he was shot and killed by an assassin in 1979.

Erection

The project was done by architect Erhan İşözen upon the request of the

municipality. The sculptor

brought the project to life. The monument was inaugurated on the 21st anniversary of Abdi İpekçi's assassination, following a ceremony at İpekçi's grave at the

Zincirlikuyu Cemetery The Zincirlikuyu Cemetery () is a modern burial ground in the European part of Istanbul, Turkey. It is administered by the Metropolitan Municipality. Many prominent figures from the world of politics, business, sports and arts rest here. The ce ...

. The inauguration was attended by İpekçi's family, close friends, and colleagues such as the editor-in-chief at the time of the ''

'' newspaper

Yalçın Doğan Yalçın or Yalcin is a given name and a surname of Turkic origin. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Yalchin Rzazadeh (born 1969), a Soviet-period Azerbaijani pop singer * Yalçın Akdoğan (born 1969), Turkish politician * Yalçı ...

and President of the Turkish Journalists Association

Nail Güreli Nail or Nails may refer to: In biology * Nail (anatomy), toughened protective protein-keratin (known as alpha-keratin, also found in hair) at the end of an animal or human digit, such as fingernail * Nail (beak), a plate of hard horny tissue at ...

. Doğan and Güreli made speeches during the inauguration ceremony. During the ceremony Güreli said that the system didn't let much light be shed onto the assassination and that the assassins were being protected, stating: "The negligence of the rulers of the country led to the murder of İpekçi and many journalists by dark forces. This ignorance must end now. Unfortunately, such an effort is not evident."

Andreas Politakis Andreas () is a name derived from the Greek noun ἀνήρ ''anēr'', with genitive ἀνδρός ''andros'', which means "man". See the article on Andrew for more information. The Scandinavian name is earliest attested as antreos in a runestone ...

, founder of the Abdi İpekçi Peace and Friendship Prize, sent a wreath to the ceremony which was on 1 February 2000. On the wreath it was written that "Abdi İpekçi's vision for Turkish-Greek rapprochement comes true 21 years later." The ceremony, which was attended by the Mayor of Şişli Municipality

Mustafa Sarıgül Mustafa Sarıgül (born 15 November 1956) is a Turkish writer, entrepreneur and politician who is currently a member of the Grand National Assembly from Erzincan. He was the mayor of the Şişli district in Istanbul between 1999 and 2014 as a m ...

, had a large crowd.

Later events

In 2006, journalists who opposed the release of İpekçi's murderer

Mehmet Ali Ağca Mehmet Ali Ağca (; born 9 January 1958) is a Turkish hitman and former member of the Grey Wolves. He murdered Abdi İpekçi, a journalist, on 1 February 1979 and was imprisoned. He escaped from prison and travelled illegally to Vatican City o ...

participated in the '' Abbas Güçlü ile Genç Bakış'' program which was held in front of Abdi İpekçi's monument. The program ''Abbas Güçlü ile Genç Bakış'' was broadcast from the street for the first time. Before the program in which many journalists reacted to this decision, guests left red carnations at İpekçi's monument and commemorated İpekçi. On 3 May 2018,

World Press Freedom Day The United Nations General Assembly declared May 3 to be World Press Freedom Day or just World Press Day, observed to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press and remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the righ ...

, the Press Council members flew pigeons in front of the Abdi İpekçi Monument. İpekçi is remembered in ceremonies in front of the monument such as at the 43rd, and the 44th anniversary of his assassination.

References

Citations

Sources

* * * * * *

External links

* {{Public art in Istanbul 2000 sculptures Bronze sculptures in Turkey Busts in Turkey Monuments and memorials in Istanbul Outdoor sculptures in Istanbul Peace monuments and memorials Sculptures by Gürdal Duyar Sculptures of children in Turkey Sculptures of doves Sculptures of men in Turkey Şişli