2019-01-02 Çankaya University

On January 2, 2019, a student at Çankaya University reportedly killed research assistant Ceren Damar Şenel. The student reportedly confessed to killing Damar Şenel after she had reported him to university officials for cheating on an exam.

CORRECTION: Scholars at Risk has removed this incident from the Academic Freedom Monitoring Project incident after determining that it does not appropriately fit within the scope of the project. Incidents of “killings, violence, or disappearances,” as reported by the project, should meet at least one of the following criteria: being in retaliation for particular academic content or conduct, expression, or associations; carried out on ideological or political grounds; connected with armed conflict; or involving the targeting of scholars, students, staff, or their institutions as proxies for state authorities. SAR has determined that the action carried out in this incident could not be qualified as one of these types. Nevertheless, SAR remains gravely concerned about the loss of life and the impact this incident has had on the family, friends, and colleagues of Ceren Damar Şenel and the Çankaya University community.