Minister Says Flooded Mine Shouldn't Have Been Allowed To Operate

In the wake of yet another mine tragedy in which 18 miners have been trapped in a mine in Ermenek, a district of Karaman province, following a flooding incident, Labor Minister Faruk Çelik has said all small mines, where investors are reluctant to invest in work safety due to the lack of profitability, should be closed down to prevent further disasters.

As of Thursday, there was little hope about the survival of the miners who were trapped under more than 10,000 tons of water, according to state officials.

“There are bitter realities in this country. Is there not revenue generation in this country over zoning? When I say this, some people react against me. I don't care whether my remarks target this or that, municipalities, ministries, my own ministry or whatever. I am speaking frankly. People are dying. We feel their pain deep in our hearts. Is it not time to speak about some issues openly?” Minister Çelik said.

The minister's remarks came during an interview with the Vatan daily, published on Thursday.

Çelik said there are many small-scale mines in Turkey that are not effective, adding that the mine in Karaman is one of them.

“These [small] mines are not in compliance with work safety standards. … Employers do not make the necessary investments in such mines where a small number of miners work and there is only a small reserve of the minerals left to mine. In order to make more profit, they want to keep the cost as low as possible, so they avoid the expense of taking the necessary precautions listed in the relevant regulations. What I am saying is that mines like these should be closed. They should be closed and more weight should be given to bigger mines where work safety can be maintained,” he said.

Çelik, who visited the flooded mine in Ermenek along with Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and three other ministers on Wednesday, said a license should not have been given to this mine in the first place because its physical conditions are terrible.

He said the jackets of all the ministers got soaked as they were coming up from the mine and that they ran out of breath when they were only 200 meters below ground.

The minister also talked about the pressure imposed on his ministry and the government to re-open the mine in Manisa's Soma district in the aftermath of the biggest mine disaster in the history of the Turkish Republic and in which 301 miners were killed in May.

“Three hundred and one people were killed in Soma. Only several days later, people began to talk about the reopening of the mine. This call was made by the workers, employers, trades people, locals and everyone there. Due to this request from the locals and the social security problems that emerged, state officials and the region's deputies all wanted the mine to be reopened,” said Çelik.

He said part of the Soma mine was reopened some time after some safety precautions were taken but that it was immediately closed once a fire broke out two days after the reopening.

(Cihan/Today's Zaman)