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Turkey
Turkish anti-riot police officers use tear gas to disperse protesters in Diyarbakir, Turkey on August 20. Photo: AFP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Sacked People's Democratic Party (HDP) mayor Ahmet Turk has announced party plans to establish a coalition on September 1 to push for constitutional change and “democratize Turkey,” in the wake of a government crackdown on the pro-Kurdish party.
Branding the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) as "the source of problems in Turkey," Mardin mayor Turk told Rudaw’s Mashalla Dekak on Friday that the Democracy Coalition is an HDP project to undo the constitutional change of recent years in Turkey and a roadmap to "democratize” the country.
As part of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s increasing grip on power after an attempted 2016 coup, Turkey held sweeping constitutional referendum in 2018 that shifted governance from a parliamentary to a presidential system.
The presidential system, including the abolition of the position of Prime Minister and other functions such as Under Secretaries in Ministries, has led to greater politicization of the public administration.
Turk, along with those of Diyarbakir and Van, was removed from power for allegedly using their positions to assist the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a militant group fighting for greater political and cultural rights for Turkey’s Kurds and designated as a terrorist organization by Ankara. Hundreds of HDP members were also arrested.
Nationwide protests were met with a heavy police response including the use of tear gas and water cannons.
The crackdown garnered widespread criticism from inside and outside the country, including Human Rights Watch and the European Union (EU).
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week defended the decision accusing the mayors of serving “terrorists instead of the people”.
Erdogan has repeatedly accused the HDP of having links to the PKK, but the party says it is instead being targeted because of its strong opposition to the president.
Turk called on the Republican People's Party (CHP), Saadat (Felicity Party) and other Kurdish parties to join their coalition.
"[CHP leader] Klichdar Oglu said what happened was unfair. But for us, that is not enough," Turk told Rudaw, calling on the CHP to joint their front to begin a "new struggle to bring about democracy."
"We are not asking the CHP to become our partner. We just say, we should embark on a new struggle to establish democracy. We do our struggle for the nation. This is our call, otherwise our politics and ideology is different from that of the CHP."
Relations between the HDP and CHP have strengthened this year after the former threw support behind CHP candidate Ekrem Imamoglu in the Istanbul mayoral election.
Imamoglu narrowly defeated the incumbent AKP mayor in the election, in part due to the votes of HDP supporters.
The Istanbul mayor arrived in Diyarbakir on Saturday to meet detained HDP Diyarbakir counterpart Adnan Mizrakli. Upon arrival in the city, Imamoglu visited the grave of Tahir Alci, a prominent Kurdish laywer and head of Diyarbakir Lawyers' Syndicate until he was shot dead by Turkish security forces in November 2015.
In an additional show of support to the HDP, two CHP lawmakers visited the detained Kurdish mayors of Mardin and Diyarbakir on August 25.
“We visited Mardin mayor Ahmed Turk in order to show our opposition to the anti-democratic and illegal coup against the elected mayor,” tweeted Ilhan Cihaner, one of the CHP lawmakers.
HDP co-chair Sezai Temelli has also asked for the CHP to up its pressure on the AKP to force a reversal of anti-opposition repression.
"We are calling on all the parties, CHP and others, to take a stance on the current situation . To hand in hand remove the giant heavy rock and change the authority. This is a responsibility lying on the shoulders of all of us... If we do not do this, we will lose," HDP co-chair Sezai Temelli, told Rudaw on Friday.
Branding the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) as "the source of problems in Turkey," Mardin mayor Turk told Rudaw’s Mashalla Dekak on Friday that the Democracy Coalition is an HDP project to undo the constitutional change of recent years in Turkey and a roadmap to "democratize” the country.
As part of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s increasing grip on power after an attempted 2016 coup, Turkey held sweeping constitutional referendum in 2018 that shifted governance from a parliamentary to a presidential system.
The presidential system, including the abolition of the position of Prime Minister and other functions such as Under Secretaries in Ministries, has led to greater politicization of the public administration.
Turk, along with those of Diyarbakir and Van, was removed from power for allegedly using their positions to assist the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a militant group fighting for greater political and cultural rights for Turkey’s Kurds and designated as a terrorist organization by Ankara. Hundreds of HDP members were also arrested.
Nationwide protests were met with a heavy police response including the use of tear gas and water cannons.
The crackdown garnered widespread criticism from inside and outside the country, including Human Rights Watch and the European Union (EU).
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week defended the decision accusing the mayors of serving “terrorists instead of the people”.
Erdogan has repeatedly accused the HDP of having links to the PKK, but the party says it is instead being targeted because of its strong opposition to the president.
Turk called on the Republican People's Party (CHP), Saadat (Felicity Party) and other Kurdish parties to join their coalition.
"[CHP leader] Klichdar Oglu said what happened was unfair. But for us, that is not enough," Turk told Rudaw, calling on the CHP to joint their front to begin a "new struggle to bring about democracy."
"We are not asking the CHP to become our partner. We just say, we should embark on a new struggle to establish democracy. We do our struggle for the nation. This is our call, otherwise our politics and ideology is different from that of the CHP."
Relations between the HDP and CHP have strengthened this year after the former threw support behind CHP candidate Ekrem Imamoglu in the Istanbul mayoral election.
Imamoglu narrowly defeated the incumbent AKP mayor in the election, in part due to the votes of HDP supporters.
The Istanbul mayor arrived in Diyarbakir on Saturday to meet detained HDP Diyarbakir counterpart Adnan Mizrakli. Upon arrival in the city, Imamoglu visited the grave of Tahir Alci, a prominent Kurdish laywer and head of Diyarbakir Lawyers' Syndicate until he was shot dead by Turkish security forces in November 2015.
In an additional show of support to the HDP, two CHP lawmakers visited the detained Kurdish mayors of Mardin and Diyarbakir on August 25.
“We visited Mardin mayor Ahmed Turk in order to show our opposition to the anti-democratic and illegal coup against the elected mayor,” tweeted Ilhan Cihaner, one of the CHP lawmakers.
HDP co-chair Sezai Temelli has also asked for the CHP to up its pressure on the AKP to force a reversal of anti-opposition repression.
"We are calling on all the parties, CHP and others, to take a stance on the current situation . To hand in hand remove the giant heavy rock and change the authority. This is a responsibility lying on the shoulders of all of us... If we do not do this, we will lose," HDP co-chair Sezai Temelli, told Rudaw on Friday.
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