The main opposition party CHP’s Leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the presidential candidate of the Nation Alliance, visited the HDP Co-Chairs Pervin Buldan and Mithat Sancar at their office in the Turkish Grand National Assembly. The meeting, which was supposed to take place on March 18, was postponed by the HDP.
Nation Alliance Presidential Candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu visited the progressive HDP Party’s Co-Chairs Pervin Buldan and Mithar Sancar.
The main opposition party CHP’s Leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the presidential candidate of the Nation Alliance, visited the HDP Co-Chairs Pervin Buldan and Mithat Sancar at their office in the Turkish Grand National Assembly. The meeting, which was supposed to take place on March 18, was postponed by the HDP.
During the visit to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Kılıçdaroğlu was joined by Oğuz Kaan Salıcı, Özgür Özel and Selin Sayek Böke; HDP Co-Chairs were accompanied by representatives Ebru Günay and Saruhan Oluç.
This is a historic meeting because the leading mainstream parties have refused to meet with the third largest party in the parliament previously due to HDP’s ethnic origins. Racism is the official stance and ideology in Turkey. Kurds are especially not seen favorably by the Kemalist, nationalist, and racist dominating ideologies of the republic. However, around 25% of the population in Turkey are Kurds, but their identities are forcefully suppressed, and they are forced to identify as Turks. The opposition coalition for the upcoming elections on May 14th has also stayed away from the progressive HDP party that identifies itself as representing the Kurds, the Turks, women, labor, LPGTQ, and other minorities.
Although the coalition of the opposition sounds natural, the race and nationality question that was established at the formation of the republic is very strong to prevent the Turks from accepting the existing of another ethnicity in the modern republic of Turkey. The official ideology in Turkey is one nation, one language, one religion, one state and one leader.
Some other coalition member parties, like the IYI party, object to even talking to the Kurds and accuse them of being terrorists for fighting to preserve the Kurdish identity, language, and customs. CHP is breaking a long tradition to acknowledge the Kurdish-based party. However, it must be noted that HDP, in recent years, having grown to be a voice of all sections of the society, has publicly identified itself as the Party of Turkey, meaning its representation covers all ethnicities and people.
After an hour-long meeting, Kılıçdaroğlu made a statement and said, “Local governments took center stage in the meeting. We conveyed that the trustee practice was not correct. We must defend democracy under all circumstances.”
In recent years the AKP government of Erdogan has attacked nearly all HDP elected local governments and municipalities, dismissed or jailed its elected HDP leaders, and appointed stewards or trustees. In most of these administrations where the government-appointed custodians are in power, the trustees spent all of the treasury on lavish expensive purchases to bankrupt the local government. In some local administrations, these trustees furnished the offices with marble toilets and showers and in others, bought snacks totaling thousands of dollars. Regardless to say that these purchases were made from AKP friendly businesses.
Kılıçdaroğlu continued, “A lot of things will probably be said on certain TV channels again tonight. Friends, aren’t you tired of fighting? Why are we fighting when we can embrace and come together and discuss,” he continued, adding, “The address for the solution of all problems, including the Kurdish problem, is the Turkish Grand National Assembly.”
The current chair of HDP, Selahattin Demirtaş, is in prison with trumped-up charges. The Justice courts in European Union have called several times for his immediate release after reviewing the cases against him in Turkey.
MB Sendika.Org News