While the Turkish government has been using repressive and militaristic means to suppress any political debate on the Kurdish issue at home since the end of the peace process with the Kurdish movement in 2015, the Turkish army has been carrying out cross-border operations also in Syria and Iraq, killing many Kurdish civilians. Such operations […]
HDP presents its 9-point roadmap to promote democracy
The Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) has presented its highly anticipated roadmap with strategic guidelines against the authoritarian-autocratic state led by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The individual steps of this roadmap are summarized in a nine-point plan, which was presented by co-chairs Pervin Buldan and Mithat Sancar in Istanbul. In the roadmap, the HDP advocates a democratic start […]
EU: Turkey should repeal measures inhibiting the functioning of local democracy
Statement by EU Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano issued a statement regarding the latest crackdown on our co-mayors. The statement reads: Decisions and actions taken by the Turkish authorities against municipalities with mayors from opposition parties remain of deep concern, in particular when they appear to be politically motivated. This is […]
HDP Headquarters Report: “The Trustee Regime in Turkey”
On 20 November, the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Headquarters in Ankara released a 35-page long report called “The Trustee Regime in Turkey”. We, the HDP Representation office in Europe, provide this short summary. Key findings are that The trustee regime is ultimately a tool of opposition repression by the Turkish government. The practice is a de facto continuation of the state of emergency […]
PES condemns latest wave of arrests and dismissals of our co-mayors
The Party of European Socialists (PES) said they are concerned by reports that Turkish authorities have detained our elected mayors: In yet another attack on democracy by President Erdogan, the mayors – Yaşar Akkuş of Idgir, Berivan Helen Işık of Siirt, Ramazan Sarsılmaz of Baykan and Bara Akgül of Kurtalan, Casim Budak of Muş-Altınova– were […]
Progressive International will launch to unite, organize, and mobilize progressive forces of the world
Progressive International has over 50 advisors from 31 countries, including Noam Chomsky, Yanis Varoufakis, Naomi Klein, Iceland PM Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Ece Temelkuran and our honorary president Ertuğrul Kürkçü. Today the Progressive International will launch with a mission to unite, organize, and mobilize progressive forces around the world. Timeline According to the timeline released by the […]
Declaration of solidarity with the Kurds and people in resistance in Northern Syria
In response to the US troop withdrawal from Syria, decided by the President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and in anticipation of the impending military attack of the free people in Rojava that this deal enables, we consider it urgent and necessary to state the following: 1. – The Commune of […]
HDP Central Executive Board’s call for action concerning the military threat on Rojava
Call for action: We can stop Turkey’s imminent invasion of Northern together! The most urgent need in Syria is to start a democratic negotiation process inclusive of all parties towards ending the civil war in the country. And the biggest threat is a new military intervention. That is why the fact that the Turkish government […]
Mızraklı: We were elected by democratic methods but suspended by non-democratic dictatorial methods
Our dismissed Diyarbakır co-mayor Adnan Selçuk Mızraklı participated UN’s panel titled “Judiciary Independence in Turkey” through video conference.The panel, organized by the Movement for Solidarity Between Peoples and Against Racism (MRAP), was held at the 42nd session of the UN Human Rights Council. His speech as follows: Dear participants, I am Doctor Selçuk Mızraklı, the […]
Bedia Özgökçe: The UN must set up a mechanism to carry out a thorough investigation of all rights violations in our dismissals
Our Van co-mayor Bedia Özgökçe Ertan participated in the 42nd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council via video conference