Under the leadership of Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University (MAKÜ) Human Rights and Freedoms Community (İHH), numerous student communities organized a march titled ‘A Breath from MAKÜ to Gaza’ to protest Israel's attacks on Gaza. The march, which started in front of the MAKÜ Mosque and ended at the MAKÜ Amphitheater Area, was attended by students, academics, administrative staff, and Prof. Dr. Tommy Ilyas, a scientist from Indonesia who came to the university for a workshop.
Throughout the march, slogans such as ‘Down with Israel, collaborator America’, ‘The world wants freedom for Palestine’, ‘Shame, resist, rebel; humanity is dying’ and ‘I am not a side, I am Gaza itself’ were chanted, and takbirs were recited. Participants carried placards with messages of support for Gaza.
The program began with a recitation of the Quran by Samet Er, a student from the Faculty of Theology. Then, Oktay Akgün delivered a speech on behalf of the student communities. In his speech, he stated that they gathered to be the voice of their oppressed brothers and said: “Despite those who adopt hatred as a sect, lies as a profession, slander as a disposition, and those who have lost hope in youth; today we gathered here not only for ourselves but to be the voice of our brothers who are oppressed in Gaza, Jerusalem, East Turkestan, and all around the world.
Gaza has been under a severe siege for 18 months. Since October 7, more than 30,000 people have lost their lives; 18,000 of them are children, 12,000 are women. This is not just a number; each one is a life, a soul, a brother of ours.
Children in Gaza face poverty, destruction, and death from the moment they are born. Women in Gaza have become symbols of resistance to protect their children, homes, and honor. O my university brother, remember: Silence is for when children are sleeping, not when they are dying. As a result of Israel's attacks, the healthcare system has collapsed, hospitals have been destroyed; educational institutions and places of worship have been targeted. Despite this, the Palestinian people continue to give a lesson of honorable resistance to humanity without losing hope.
Today, we shout once again: Netanyahu is a murderer! Israel is an organized evil! Greetings to our brothers standing on every front of resistance. We remember our martyrs with mercy.
We extend our greetings from Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University, which we are proud to be a part of, to all those with a conscience; we thank the university administration for their support and you for your participation.”
Gaza is dying, but not with bombs, with our silence
Later in the event, Dr. Lecturer Reyda Şıklaroğlu from the Vocational School of Food, Agriculture and Livestock shared her impressions of Gaza with the participants.
Starting her speech with the words “Gaza is dying, but not with bombs, with our silence”, she expressed: “We visited our brothers in Gaza. Their situation is heartbreaking.
However, it is no longer Israel's bombs that are killing them; it is the silence of their Muslim brothers. From the moment we landed in Egypt, all our permits were canceled. Every step we took was monitored. We made numerous attempts to reach the closest point to Gaza, but even that was not allowed. Gaza has become an open-air prison. People are dying of hunger and thirst. In every house we entered, there were orphans, the fatherless, the wounded, veterans, and relatives of martyrs. Their only request from us was prayer.
To meet just one day's needs of Gaza, 900 aid trucks are required. However, even getting these trucks inside faces great difficulties. For example, we prepare an aid truck for $100,000, but we have to pay a $25,000 bribe for it to be allowed in. Gaza is dying, but it is dying because of our silence. In fact, it is not Gaza that needs us, but we who need Gaza. We need to witness their faith-filled stance, their sacrifice, and their resistance.”
Şıklaroğlu concluded her speech with our National Poet Mehmet Akif Ersoy's poem ‘I Cannot Applaud Oppression’, after which the student community members chanted slogans again. The event ended with a prayer for Gaza and the serving of halva.
Rector Prof. Dr. Hüseyin Dalgar also expressed his reaction to the attacks in Gaza through a post on social media. In his post, Rector Dalgar included the following statements:
“Today, at Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University, consciences spoke, hearts beat for Gaza. Although I could not physically participate in this meaningful march due to being at the education fair in Indonesia, Prof. Dr. Tommy Ilyas, a scientist who came to our university for a workshop from Indonesia, also participated and supported. This meaningful solidarity has once again shown that the conscience of humanity and brotherhood cannot be limited by geography.
In the march organized under the leadership of our student communities, we became a strong voice against oppression together with our academics, administrative staff, and students. I am proud of our students who are the voice of justice and humanity, and I sincerely thank each of them for their sensitivity. Every step we took, saying “I am not a side, I am Gaza itself!” turned into a call of conscience. As MAKÜ, we not only produce knowledge; we also defend conscience, justice, and humanity.”
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