A high school student in southeastern Turkey’s Şırnak province allegedly took his own life after being thrown out of a state-sponsored dormitory, sparking criticism over the country’s student housing crisis.
According to the Birgün daily’s reporting, 17-year-old A.B. died by suicide on Saturday after being thrown out of a dormitory following an argument with the dormitory’s superintendent. The young boy’s family lived in a provincial area of Şırnak, compelling him to stay in the dormitory to attend school.
Following the incident, authorities issued a statement saying they were investigating the circumstances of A.B.’s death.
However, journalists have drawn attention to a concerning trend in student suicides over the last few months. Due to the high cost of living and the housing crisis, many students have been struggling to keep financially afloat while carrying on with their studies.
Only two months ago, in October, a student took his own life by hanging himself in the university dinning hall. According to his friends, the young man had financial problems and could not attend his classes. The student’s death sparked demonstrations, during which other students protested the cost of living, saying they had lost hope for the future.
Three other students died by suicide the same month, two of them in the state-sponsored dormitory where they were living at the time.
Two female students died by suicide in November. Both were first-year university students, studying to become doctors.
A platform for feminist students called on Turkish authorities to immediately investigate the death of A.B. on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Other social media accounts dedicated to solidarity with students also called on authorities to investigate A.B.’s death and to urgently attend to university students’ needs.
Occasionally speaking to the media, university students have said financial problems had become very common and that all students experience some kind of money troubles. They have called on university administrations to be aware of these problems and find ways to provide support for their students.
A staggeringly high cost of living has become the new normal in Turkey, where recent increases in food and utility prices are pushing up inflation, further crippling the purchasing power of citizens.
According to a report by the United Metal Workers Union Class Research Center (BISAM) the poverty line for an average family in Turkey is 43,623 Turkish lira ($1,562). Among the most expensive food groups are milk and milk products, followed meat, eggs and legumes.
In September the independent Inflation Research Group (ENAG) claimed that inflation was at 130 percent, contradicting the official figure released by TurkStat of almost 61.53 percent on an annualized basis.
