* Photo: HDP Press
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The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) held a Democratic Local Governments Conference in Ankara yesterday (September 26).
Kurdish politician Ahmet Türk and HDP Co-Chair Mithat Sancar as well as elected co-mayors attended the event in the capital city.
In his speech, Ahmet Türk stated:
"We are here today as a result of a long-running struggle. The policies of oppression, intimidation and political genocide have been ongoing since the 1990s. Despite all the policies of intimidation that have been in effect and all the heavy prices that have been paid, we are a political party that has become the hope of our people and we believe that we have the staff to be the architects of the future in the democratic politics."
Referring to the appointment of trustees to Kurdish-majority cities in Turkey, Ahmet Türk said, "What they aimed for was not governing the municipalities, but trying to intimidate us by seizing people's will."
Türk: The interlocutor is our people
Türk also touched upon the recent debates on "who the interlocutor is in resolving the Kurdish question" in Turkey.
Referring to the efforts of the opposition parties, especially the Nation's Alliance of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and the İYİ Party, Ahmet Türk recalled that there are talks about a return to a reinforced Parliamentary government system in Turkey.
Noting that "five-six parties have reached a consensus on bringing this system to Turkey's agenda and putting it into effect," Ahmet Türk stated, "I see that the efforts of one party about the Kurdish question will not be enough. If all parties come together and take up the same attitude about the issue, it will make it easier for the Kurdish question to be resolved."
Türk said, "Today, everyone sees that politics without the HDP can never come to power in Turkey," briefly adding the following:
"If there is a desire for a democratic change and if they want our peoples to meet around shared democratic values, they have to listen to the voices and take the opinions of all Kurdish actors.
"An attitude except for this will never ever be successful. In order to resolve the Kurdish question, they should first internalize the existence, identity, future and status of the Kurdish people. If a politician does not internalize the rights of the Kurdish people, he or she cannot resolve that problem.
"There are sometimes debates about interlocutors. Who is the interlocutor? The interlocutor is our people and all actors who are waging the struggle of our people. We finish the discussion like that."
Sancar: HDP is the key to resolution
In his speech at the event, HDP Co-Chair Mithat Sancar said, "The HDP is growing despite all obstacles. The growth of the HDP means that the hope for and the belief in a democratic future grow as well. We will all together see that as the ways of negotiation are expanded, the HDP is the power and key to resolution in its alliance to be formed with the democracy forces."
Further in his speech, Mithat Sancar stated, "We want a negotiation with all sections of society. Negotiation and dialogue, participation and legitimacy pave the way for democracy in Turkey. When you exclude dialogue, there remains no politics. We want to resolve the problems not with guns, violence, war policies or a securitarian mindset, but with dialogue and a social consensus as wide as possible."
Noting that the HDP "aspires to resolve all problems of Turkey", HDP Co-Chair Sancar said, "It will not be possible to bring democracy, peace, equality and freedom to Turkey without the HDP. As the channels of negotiation are established and it is ensured that the dialogue is permanent, we have no doubt that we will explain this to all peoples of Turkey."
"We have the staff, faith and perseverance to resolve all problems of Turkey, especially a democratic solution for the Kurdish question and peace," said Sancar, adding, "For this reason, we want to build the future together. We want to bring a bright, free future to Turkey together. We insistently speak for democracy and peace; we insistently speak for peace and equality."
Following the speeches at the conference, the messages of former co-mayors of Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality Gültan Kışanak and Selçuk Mızraklı from prison were also read out. (DŞ/SD)
