It has been 28 years since the martyrdom of the tradesman Martyr Cemal Süslü, who was known as the “Father of the Poor” by poverty-stricken families in Turkey's southeastern Diyarbakır province.

Martyr Cemal Süslü, who ran a shoe store in Diyarbakır's central Bağlar district and was the door of hope for families in need at that time, was martyred as a result of an armed attack at his workplace on 15 November 1993.

It is his great personality that friends remember most although 28 years have passed since his martyrdom.

Mahmut Çevik, one of his friends who met Martyr Cemal from primary school and continued to be friends until his martyrdom, said: “The martyr was registered in Kulp district and was a member of the Badika Tribe. His father is Sheikh İbrahim, he had a sheikh lineage on his father's side. He lived on Sakarya street in the central Bağlar district of Diyarbakır, we were neighbors. His family was one of the prominent families in the district.  Those who fell ill at that time used to come to the father of martyr Cemal and want to receive the prayer of goodness and healing because he was a sheik.  His father used to wear a long gown and a towelhead.”

“The needy called him 'Father of the Poor'”

Reminding that the Martyr was running a shoe shop when he was martyred, Çevik went on to say: “We used to stop by and chat with him every time I left the house. Since he was not an orator, he would sometimes say, ‘Let’s visit someone in such a place and tell him about the Islamic cause’. He would visit with his friends, who would explain religion well to those he was interested in and would try to convey Islam.  His friendship was good.  I've never seen him argue with his friends and break hearts.  Most of the people would come and ask for a loan from the martyr at that time.  He would not say 'no' to anyone, sometimes he would erase the debts of those who bought shoes and could not pay."

Çevik said: “Before adopting the Islamic cause, our families used to shop at his shop. His honest, moral, charitable, and merciful nature attracted people. He was a very self-sacrificing person. He was nicknamed ‘Father of the Poor’.  He had done so much secret charity that we did not know about it even though we had been friends with him for years.  After he was martyred, a couple of women came and said, ‘Our father died, he used to bring flour to our house every month’, and they said that the martyr had warned them not to tell anyone about this.”

“While we were preparing the grave of another martyr, we received the news of Cemal’s martyrdom”

Cevik, who stated that although Martyr Cemal did not have much Islamic knowledge, he influenced his environment with self-sacrifice, humility, and sincerity, stated that the martyr’s family approached the new Islamic movement with fear and uneasiness because they did not have an Islamic consciousness.

Citing the events that took place on the day of martyrdom, Çevik said: “We stopped by him on the day of his martyrdom and had a chat. When I was going to leave, he would say ‘sit a little longer, as if he didn’t want me to go. I said, ‘I have a job to do, I have to go’. He didn’t let go of my hand to say goodbye. I pulled my hand away from his.  We got the news of a martyr while we were digging a grave.  At that time, another news came and it was said, 'Dig a grave for Martyr Cemal'.  Some days, news of a few martyrs came in this way."

Çevik said: “We heard that the PKK and other groups carried out the massacre together. While the martyr was doing his job, they raided his workplace. While Martyr Cemal was sitting on a chair in the shop, the killers suddenly came in and fired. Even though the martyr tried to defend himself, the bullet hit his heart and he fell to the ground and became a martyr.” (ILKHA)