Emotion in Turkey after the suspicious death of a Gabonese student

A view of the city of Karabük where the young Gabonese student died. © Craig Pershouse/Getty Images

Text by: RFI Follow

3 min

The body of 17-year-old Jeannah Danys Dinabongho Ibouanga was found on 25 March in a river near Karabük University, where she was studying mechanical engineering. According to the initial conclusions of the investigation, it would be a "natural" death. But his relatives and the representation of Gabon in Turkey demand a counter-expertise.

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With our correspondent in Istanbul, Anne Andlauer

Since the body of "Dina", as she was known to her friends, was found in the Filyos River, not far from Karabük University, her relatives do not believe in an accidental death. What was she doing near a river, without phone or ID, in shorts and sandals, in this region of northern Turkey where the temperature in March rarely exceeds 10 degrees?

The first autopsy report concluded that he died "by drowning". According to excerpts published in Turkish media, his body showed no signs of sexual assault, nor sharp object or firearm wounds. In a statement, the Karabük prosecutor's office announced that the investigation continues with the search for witnesses and CCTV images, as well as the analysis of the young woman's clothes.

No real investigation, according to the Gabonese embassy

Questioned by AFP, the Gabonese embassy in Ankara denounced the lack of a real investigation, saying that suspects had not been questioned because "the victim is black". A diplomat from the embassy points the finger at two employees of the Karabük post office who allegedly harassed the young woman, and evokes the thesis of an assassination.

In a voice message, presented on Twitter as a call to her mother, the crying student begs to let her go to Sakarya University, less than two hours drive east of Istanbul: "There is no racism there," pleads the young woman. The diplomat confirmed that it was indeed a message sent by the student.

On Twitter, the hashtag #JusticepourDina is spreading among African students at his university, dozens of whom have tried to protest this week on campus.

► Read also: In Turkey, students spend the night in parks to denounce poor housing

Protests postponed in Libreville

The theory of drowning does not convince the victim's family and more generally Gabonese. At the family home of Jeannah Danys Dinabongho Ibouanga, where our correspondent in Libreville, Yves Laurent Goma, visited, theformer classmates of middle and high school gather with his mother. After prayer, anger.

Justice!" ... "For Dina!", "Justice!" ... "For Dina!" ... "To tell us that she drowned at 23, less than 3 degrees, nearly 200 km from her city, is inconsistent, so we demand justice," said one student.

The version of drowning evoked by the Turkish authorities irritates the family. "We cannot believe this version from the moment the Gabonese authorities speak of assassination, we cannot believe in drowning," Annie Olympe Benga, the student's aunt, told RFI. From the Turkish authorities, we expect light and justice to be done for Dina. From the Gabonese authorities, we want them to put pressure on the Turkish authorities so that the body of our daughter can be repatriated after catching the culprits.

Since the announcement of the student's death on 26 March, Libreville residents have tried to demonstrate in front of the Turkish embassy but were systematically pushed back by the police with tear gas.

The death of this student has awakened the pain of the family of student Ketch Oboro, who died murdered in Russia and whose circumstances of this atrocious death have never been elucidated.

Emotion in Turkey after the suspicious death of a Gabonese student

Emotion in Turkey after the suspicious death of a Gabonese student

No real investigation, according to the Gabonese embassy

Protests postponed in Libreville

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