First Prison Photo of HDP Co-Chair Demirtaş Released
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The first photo of Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş’s has been released to the public since his arrest as part of an investigation by Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on November 3, 2016.
The photo was taken while Demirtaş received a visit from his father Tahir, mother Sadiye, spouse Başak, daughters Delal and Dılda, and brother Şadiye.
Accompanying the photo was a message that read: “Greetings from the heart to everybody who makes an effort for the beautiful days to come”. The photo was shared on the HDP Headquarter’s Twitter account.
About Selahattin Demirtaş
Selahattin Demirtaş was born in Elazığ in 1973, where he completed both his primary and secondary education.
Upon graduation from secondary school, he took the university entrance exam and started his college education at Dokuz Eylül University in the department of Maritime Commerce and Management in İzmir, where he would face political problems that would force him to leave school without finishing his degree. He returned to Diyarbakır and retook the university entrance exam, after which he enrolled at Ankara University Law Faculty.
After college, Demirtaş worked as a freelance lawyer for a time before becoming a member of the executive committee of the Diyarbakır Branch of the Human Rights Association (IHD).
Demirtaş started his political career as a member of the Democratic Society Party (DTP) in 2007, at which time he stood as one of the ‘Thousand Hope Candidates’ for the DTP and several other democratic organizations in Turkey. He was elected to the 23rd Parliament and became the Parliamentary Chief Officer for the party at the age of 34.
Demirtaş was the co-chair of the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) at the start of the peace process and negotiations between the Turkish State and the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK). Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ were elected co-chairs of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), an initiative originating from a coalition of the BDP and other political parties and organization under the auspices of the Peoples' Democratic Congress (HDK), for the 2014 presidential elections. The HDP hoped to attract left-wing voters, and Demirtaş ultimately received 9.77% of the vote.
Demirtaş and Yüksekdağ remained co-leaders during the June 2015 general election, the party's first. The HDP came in fourth place with 13.12% of the vote, and 80 of 550 parliamentary seats. Celebrating the victory, Demirtaş said: “From now on, the HDP is Turkey’s party. The HDP is Turkey, Turkey is the HDP.
On November 4 2016, Demirtaş was arrested, along with other HDP MPs. In response, Demirtaş stated he is not a "manager, member, spokesperson, or sympathiser" of the PKK.
On January 18, Turkish prosecutors announced they were seeking a 142-year prison sentence for Demirtaş. (EKN/TK)