BBC Monitoring European,
05/2014
Newsletter
"It was clear that this accident was coming," Ahmet Telek said. "They were mining an extra million tons. The TKI is the largest perpetrator of this accident. As a miner, I feel ashamed about the dress rooms and conditions of miners," he added, criticizing Soma Mining A.S. for not investing back into the sector. There are 15,000 miners in the region, he said, while raising questions over future risks.Some 5,000 occupational accidents happened last year, with 90 percent of them occurring in mines, Telek said. "The number of accidents boomed after 90 percent of mining sites were privatized," he said. "Hiring subcontractors has turned into a state policy. People are put in a race to mine coal."
