“Whoever Lives in Şişli is Listed in HDP”

With little time left for 2014 local elections, one of the prominent aspects of this election is that the amount of minorities amongst the candidates slightly increased.

Only HDP and BDP (Peace and Democracy Party) present candidates the minorities for mayorship. Besides that, CHP (Republican People’s Party), AKP (Justice and Development Party) and MHP (Nationalist Movement Party) have municipal assembly member candidates with an Armenian background. HDP, on the other hand, also has mayor candidates with  Armenian, Assyrian, Anatolian Greek and Jewish backgorund.

Having the most candidates from monorities,HDP will run in elections in Şişli with Armenian Kenan Yenice, a co-mayor candidate along with Ayşe Berktay. Candidate council members are Armenian Pakrat Estukyan, Jewish Eli Haligula, Lara Fresko and Assyrian Orhan Arpak.

"All cosmopolits of Şişli included"

We, bianet, asked Eli Haligua: “Why did you become a candidate?”

“We are part of this country even if we are called ‘others’. I don’t feel like a showcase here. Armenians, Jews, Anatolian Greeks, Turks, Kurds, Assyrians, lumps, -on behalf of animals- animal rights defenders and a lot of identities co-exist in Şişli. We have tried to reflect this diversity with our council. We have succeeded substantially.”

“I think this representations have come too late. In fact, it is the flip side of the coin. You face difficulties in this country if you are not Sunni or Muslim. I wish they had not carried out genocide and exiled people along the process of building a nation-state. There wouldn’t be minorities. We must face with official history immediately.”

"We will start with the streets"

"We aim to give back the streets’ names. We will change the name of Ergenekon Avenue to Hrant Dink Avenue. We will return Tatavla to its old name. In a district where minorities live in most, names like ‘Talat Pasha Primary School’, ‘Bozkurt Neighborhood’ [bozkurt is sacred animal for Central Asia Turks] still keeps traumatizing people scoffingly with the help of an official ideology. For instance, we have tried to contribute to Baklahorani Carnival, a banned carnival of Anatolian Greek people who are minorities as a result of exile and genocide. We both save people’s freedom of belief and disbelief, and support sensitive cultures whenever possible," Haligua said. (NV/BD/BM)