‘CHP Chair Kılıçdaroğlu Gives us His Promise for October 10 Monument’

"We will not forget October 10"

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Mehtap Sakinci-Coşgun, the Chair of the October 10 Peace and Solidarity Association (10 Ekim-Der) has announced that they have met main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu about the construction of a monument in memory of 103 people who lost their lives in the ISIS attack against "Peace Rally" on October 10, 2015.

'We set our hopes on local election process'

Reminding that a decision was taken a long time ago to erect a monument in front of Ankara Train Station, where the attack was launched, Association Chair Sakinci-Coşgun has stated the following to bianet:

"We have been running a process up until this time. It is a process that we have maintained with a symbolic monument from its beginning to its end. There is a decision taken right after the incident to erect a monument there.

"Local elections was a process that we really set our hopes on. Afterwards, we faced a picture where the promises given to us were forgotten."

Sakinci-Coşgun has also stated that City Council Chair of Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Halil İbrahim Yılmaz called them and said that he would like to negotiate on building the monument.

'Bureaucratic steps have been taken'

Reiterating that the meeting with Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş was not held, Sakinci-Coşgun continued as follows:

"We were faced with an attitude that did not mean 'No, we will not meet you', but did not lead to a possibility of a meeting, either. We are addressing ourselves to the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality.

"The institutional identity is important for us. The Municipality has given this authority to the City Council. And our problem will be resolved through this channel. Our aim was not to meet Mansur Yavaş in any case."

Referring to their meeting with CHP Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, Sakinci-Coşgun has continued as follows:

"I think that we could convey this request and complaint of ours to Kılıçdaroğlu as well as our inability to wait any longer. Now, a bureaucratic step has been taken and we have acquired a gain.

'Kılıçdaroğlu promised us personally'

"I told the following to Kılıçdaroğlu: It is a massacre that has left a mark on the Republican history and the decisions taken after that have not been implemented. You promised us change. You said, 'We also died in this massacre.' You said, 'We share your pain.'

"And we told you, 'Then, what are you waiting for to implement this decision?' Will we wait for a new election? Be the architect of it. Let the CHP and Ankara Metropolitan Municipality be the architect of it.

"We received a personal promise from Kılıçdaroğlu. We will meet Metropolitan Municipality City Council Chair when we are available. We have very firm beliefs that we were sincerely called and this process will change." (AÖ/SD)