– 9-
The door to the third ward opened.
Sergeant Mevlut and Akin, who accompanied him to the 3rd ward, went to one side and Hunch Back and the Dark Trouble went to the other side.
Adem stood exactly in the middle of the doorway of the third ward and peeked at it.
There were bunk bed facing each other on both sides of the walls of the cell.
There were prisoners in the empty area between the bunk beds. They had shaved heads and they were standing like statutues. The prisoners were gaunt, their eyes sunken, they were pale mummies.
They all had the same black military uniforms.
If the man had not seen their eyes moving he would have thought they were dead
They all heard a very loud and strong voice saying “ATTENTIOON!” And the prisoners yelled and answered at the top of their lungs “Yes Sir.”
Sergeant Mevlut said “you SOBs! What kind of an answer is that? “Get under the beds!”
As soon as they hear the Commander, The prisoners, who were lined in rows, trampled each other trying to get under the beds.
The fat military guard of the third ward yelled “the last number is three.”
There was not enough space under the beds for all the prisoners to fit. Because none of the prisoners wante their limbs sticking out from underthe beds so they trampled on each other.
The fat commando said “two.”
The tall prisoners had difficulty fitting under the beds. One couldn’t make it.
When he said “three”, all the moving bodies became stones.
However, not all could fit under the beds. Some prisoners could not fit their arms; some could not fit their feet and some had left their butts outside the beds.
Then the commandos, clubs in their hands, struck the bodies of the prisoners with their utmost power.
The screams and moans of the prisonars shook the heavans, and he thought even silent death would be sweet.
Adem became speechless when Sergeant Mevlut asked him: “Do you like it here Sir?
When Sergeant Mevlut did not get an answer from Adem, the door of the cell was closed.
“Turn back” march to the fifth ward!”. Hearing his command the man marched like a robot…
– 10 –
The man is waiting in the middle of the corridor which separates the whole prison into two parts.
This corridor is approximiately 200 metres long and 8 metres wide. There are many corridor on the right and the left leading to this corridor, so it looks like a labyrinth
All the walls of this corriodor are painted with Ataturk’s pictures, Turkish flags and war scenes.
The military hymns and praises of Turkish nationlism were written between Ataturk’s pictures, war scenes and Turkish flags.
The floor of the main corridor was wet and there some spots with pools of water filled with detergent, 5 cm high.
The man saw a group of prisoners approximately. 100 meters away.
Every 10 meters there were approximately. 20 soldiers standing on both sides of the corridors.
Sergeant Mevlut, who took the priosner to the wards, said “stand still!” The man went to the side and stood like a statutue.
He begins to watch the scene in front of him.
Eight people are lying down and another eight stand holding their feet under their arms. They use them like mops, cleaning the floors. After a few turns they change positions and continue the cleaning.
The man was shocked, it was the first time he saw here, that a person can be a mop.
He raised his head up looked at the writing on the wall “One Turk can face the whole world.” After he read the saying he felt sick….
-11-
The door of the fifth ward opened and the man entered.
He saw that approximately 30 prisoners were standing at attention. The prisoners’ chests were thrust out, and their hands were at their sides.
There is a prisoner holding a book, he is three meters away, but facing the group.
As soon as Adem stepped inside the prisoners started reading from the book.
“Mustafa Kemal”
The rest of the prisoners, still standing at attention, repeated in chorus “Mustafa Kemal…”
The prisoner who read:
“Ataturk’s life.”
All the others in unison: “…..”Ataturk’s Life”
The reader: “Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s
The rest like a choir: “Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s
The reader: “Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s father’s name:”
The rest like a choir: “Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s father’s name”
The reader: “Ali Riza Efendi”
The choir: “Ali Riza Efendi”
Commando Akin interrupted the scene: “Stop it you SOBs! It is not loud enough. Now the hymn!”
In the meantime Dark Trouble holding a club enters the cell and started monitering the voices
Dark Trouble gave the command to the first one: “Start the military hymn”
And the prisoner with a loud voice:
Your forefathers and your grandfather, your origin is your father
Are from the heroic Turkish nation.
Your armies always strong
Have given name to the world.
The prisoner read it precisely.
Dark Trouble said to the reader “Ey you why do still have loud voice?”
SergeantEulogist gave the order to another prsioner “You ass hole start with the war hymn.”
The prisoner:
“Even if we face iron mountains on our ways,
We are like hawks in the boundry less skies.” The prisoner was weak and did not have loud voice; he could only murmured the hymne.
SergeantEulogist: “You SOB where is your voice” “You deserve beating.”
The prisoner extended his hands.
They beat him with iron sticks, beams, and truncheons.
The same scene was being repeated throughout the day.
The man had seen everything that he was expected to see. He continued the walk to another cell section to see what he had not seen.
