Party Closures, Lifting Immunities No Use

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Deputy Prime Minister and Government Spokesperson Numan Kurtulmuş has made a statement following the Ministerial Cabinet meeting.

Kurtulmuş has stated “Nobody has voted for anybody so that they can support terror”.

Kurtulmuş has added that the security forces have been showing a maximum effort to distinguish members of the terrorist organization from civil citizens.

Some headlines from Kurtulmuş’s statement are as follows:

“HDP members must show maximum effort”

“Nobody has voted for anybody so that they can support terror and back the terrorist organization.

“Nobody has voted for anybody so that they can seek other ways of political struggle rather than the democratic one and develop their politics on that basis.

“We have seen party closures do not bring the slightest use for politics. Likewise we have also witnessed that lifting parliamentary immunities brings no results.

“Therefore HDP (Peoples’ Democratic Party) has primarily the biggest responsibility. The ones doing politics within HDP should pay attention to use the language of peace and showing maximum effort to make democratic institutions operate and democratic rules function”.

“Distinguishing civilians”

“Our security forces act with the maximum accuracy to distinguish members of the terrorist organization from civil citizens.

“Our determination in the struggle against terror is as obvious as how ever clear and transparent our intention is that our citizens come to no harm through this terror.

“Within the struggle against terror, there may be some actions going beyond the primary intention. In this regard, we tell the public opinion, everybody feel at ease. If a mistake has been done, this will be revealed and the concerned will be called to account for.

“You know that in the past four security officers involved in the incident of body of a terrorist being dragged and drawn on the ground in Silopi, have been laid off”.

Mystery in lay-offs

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu had announced that the two police officers detected to have dragged Hacı Lokman Birlik killed in Şırnak in October 12, on the back of an armoured vehicle on the streets were laid off.

Yet according to the report of Selin Görgüner from Cumhuriyet daily, HDP Şırnak MP Leyla Birlik, noting that the statement of Prime Minister Davutoğlu announcing the police officers who had fastened the dead body of Hacı Lokma Birlik at the back of an armoured vehicle named “scorpion” and dragged it on the ground had been laid off, did not reflect the truth, has stated that “the police officers said to be suspended, have only been dismissed due to having made a shooting with the camera”. (EKN/DG)

* Photograph: Aykut Ünlüpınar / AA