Temel Ataçocuğu recently embarked on an ambitious yet meaningful journey. The Turkish man who has been living in New Zealand for the past 13 years, will follow the literal path of Brenton Tarrant, the terrorist who traveled to Christchurch to attack mosques. Tarrant's journey filled with hatred ended with the killing of 51 people, while Ataçocuğu, one of the 49 people injured in the attacks, has decided to carry out a "peace walk."
The 47-year-old father of two still bears the scars of the attacks where he was hit by nine bullets fired by Tarrant, who sprayed the faithful with gunfire at the Linwood and Al Noor mosques. After multiple surgeries, he is still recovering from the 2019 attacks, which he believes gave him a new mission, to contribute to world peace. On March 1, Ataçocuğu set off from outside Tarrant's home in Dunedin for a 360-kilometer (224-mile) walk to Christchurch. The walk is not that easy for him as five of the nine bullets hit him in the feet, three others in the arms and one in the mouth and remain a grim reminder of what he went through. But Ataçocuğu said he felt the need to do something after he saw remembrance events being carried out by the youth on the second anniversary of the attacks.
So far, he has walked about 160 kilometers. Despite the pain, he keeps smiling as he sports a Turkey cap and a blue sweatshirt that lists the names of several charities that he is raising money for.
"I walk for about 30 kilometers every day and I have blisters. It is painful for me," he told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Wednesday. Yet, he cheers the support he received from New Zealanders he meets along his way. "One day, a 90-year-old woman celebrating her birthday saw me from her window. She sent me a few pieces of her birthday cake so I could regain my energy. It made me very happy. People of New Zealand are very friendly and helpful," he said.
Ataçocuğu says the walk is only "a beginning" for his activities to support peace. "If I can make a small contribution, for peace, for our future, I will be happy," he said, before quoting the famous saying of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Republic of Turkey: "Peace at home, peace in the world."