People react during a funeral ceremony of the miners who died in an explosion on May 15, 2014, in the western town of Soma in the Manisa province of Turkey
Istanbul, Turkey:
The deadliest coalmine blast in Turkish history has plunged a region into mourning, and reignited concerns over lax safety in a country with the highest number of mining deaths in Europe.
At least 282 workers died after Tuesday's explosion -- believed to have been sparked by an electrical fault -- at a private mine in the western district of Soma, one of the worst such accidents in recent history.
As hope dwindled for scores more men still trapped underground, the spotlight turned to what experts said was Turkey's shameful record on mine safety.
"Turkey has possibly the worst safety record in terms of mining accidents and explosions in Europe and the third worst in the world," Kemal Ozkan, assistant general secretary of the Geneva-based international trade union federation IndustriALL Global Union, told AFP.
Ozkan called the number of mineworkers killed in this week's fatal accident "mind boggling and staggering".
"This recent tragedy must rank as the worst mining tragedy in recent memory, and is made all the more tragic by the seemingly uncaring attitude of the government and mining companies," he charged.
"It is unacceptable that mine workers in Turkey are denied their basic human right to work in an environment that guarantees their safety and that they are expected to go to work to die."
In 73 years, 3,000 miners have died in Turkey, he said, noting that Ankara has yet to ratify the International Labour Organization's (ILO) convention on mine safety.
"Turkey must act now to ratify it: now, before this tragedy is lost from the headlines and forgotten until the next catastrophe," Ozkan said.
The disaster spells a new headache for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who weathered mass anti-government protests last summer followed by an ongoing corruption scandal implicating some of his closest allies.
Now his government stands accused of failing to heed the warning signs of a possible disaster in Soma, a key centre for lignite coal mining which is no stranger to tragedies.
Ozgur Ozel, a local lawmaker from the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), said his request to investigate work-related accidents at coalmines in Soma had been turned down by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in parliament.
- 'Inspectors not independent' -
Turkey is estimated to have around 7,000 mines, employing more than 120,000 people.
Explosions and cave-ins are common and are often blamed on mine operators, accused of flouting basic safety standards to maximise profits.
Turkey's worst mining accident to date had been in 1992 when 263 workers were killed in a gas explosion in a mine in Zonguldak.
The country's ministry of labour and social security said the Soma mine was regularly inspected and found to comply with safety regulations.
Mining company Soma Komur also said it had taken maximum measures to ensure safety.
But Mehmet Torun, a former head of the Chamber of Mining Engineers in Soma, told AFP there was a lack of reliable risk assessment in the sector.
"The problem is, inspectors assessing risks in these mines are not independent," he said.
"The fact they receive their salaries from the mining companies they inspect casts doubt over the reliability of their reports.
"On paper, staff receive safety training every six or 12 months, but the question is whether they are qualified enough."
Ayhan Yuksel, the current head of the Chamber of Mining Engineers, was also skeptical about the level of training of a workforce of mostly-illiterate miners.
As unions called a general strike over the incident, angry demonstrators took to the streets Thursday, clashing with police in the western city og Izmir, and in the capital Ankara.
"This is not an accident, this is murder!" charged the leftist DISK union on its website.
At least 282 workers died after Tuesday's explosion -- believed to have been sparked by an electrical fault -- at a private mine in the western district of Soma, one of the worst such accidents in recent history.
As hope dwindled for scores more men still trapped underground, the spotlight turned to what experts said was Turkey's shameful record on mine safety.
"Turkey has possibly the worst safety record in terms of mining accidents and explosions in Europe and the third worst in the world," Kemal Ozkan, assistant general secretary of the Geneva-based international trade union federation IndustriALL Global Union, told AFP.
Ozkan called the number of mineworkers killed in this week's fatal accident "mind boggling and staggering".
"This recent tragedy must rank as the worst mining tragedy in recent memory, and is made all the more tragic by the seemingly uncaring attitude of the government and mining companies," he charged.
"It is unacceptable that mine workers in Turkey are denied their basic human right to work in an environment that guarantees their safety and that they are expected to go to work to die."
In 73 years, 3,000 miners have died in Turkey, he said, noting that Ankara has yet to ratify the International Labour Organization's (ILO) convention on mine safety.
"Turkey must act now to ratify it: now, before this tragedy is lost from the headlines and forgotten until the next catastrophe," Ozkan said.
The disaster spells a new headache for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who weathered mass anti-government protests last summer followed by an ongoing corruption scandal implicating some of his closest allies.
Now his government stands accused of failing to heed the warning signs of a possible disaster in Soma, a key centre for lignite coal mining which is no stranger to tragedies.
Ozgur Ozel, a local lawmaker from the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), said his request to investigate work-related accidents at coalmines in Soma had been turned down by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in parliament.
- 'Inspectors not independent' -
Turkey is estimated to have around 7,000 mines, employing more than 120,000 people.
Explosions and cave-ins are common and are often blamed on mine operators, accused of flouting basic safety standards to maximise profits.
Turkey's worst mining accident to date had been in 1992 when 263 workers were killed in a gas explosion in a mine in Zonguldak.
The country's ministry of labour and social security said the Soma mine was regularly inspected and found to comply with safety regulations.
Mining company Soma Komur also said it had taken maximum measures to ensure safety.
But Mehmet Torun, a former head of the Chamber of Mining Engineers in Soma, told AFP there was a lack of reliable risk assessment in the sector.
"The problem is, inspectors assessing risks in these mines are not independent," he said.
"The fact they receive their salaries from the mining companies they inspect casts doubt over the reliability of their reports.
"On paper, staff receive safety training every six or 12 months, but the question is whether they are qualified enough."
Ayhan Yuksel, the current head of the Chamber of Mining Engineers, was also skeptical about the level of training of a workforce of mostly-illiterate miners.
As unions called a general strike over the incident, angry demonstrators took to the streets Thursday, clashing with police in the western city og Izmir, and in the capital Ankara.
"This is not an accident, this is murder!" charged the leftist DISK union on its website.
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