HDP Slams Appointment of Trustees: 30 Million People's Will Usurped in Five Years

* Photo: Mezopotamya Agency, journalist Taylan Özvarış

Click to read the article in Turkish / Kurdish

Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair Mithat Sancar has held a statement for the press about the recent appointment of trustees to the HDP municipalities in Siirt, Iğdır, Baykan, Kurtalan and Altınova.

Addressing the reporters at the HDP Central Office in Ankara today (May 15), Sancar has said, "It is a coup, it means disregarding democracy. It means destroying the faith that people have in democracy. It is being implemented successively and by being extended over time. The appointment of trustees is also called enmity towards the people."

Other highlights from his speech are as follows:

'Opposition municipalities are targeted'

"This government, using the authorities in its power, is staging a coup by eliminating people's will. With its policy of trustees, the government is bearing enmity towards Kurdish people. The appointment of trustees is the severest and most apparent example of its enmity towards Kurds. The pro-coup mindset of the government manifests itself in other fields as well.

"The government also tried to discipline CHP municipalities with a blackmail through trustees. While the humanity is struggling against the coronavirus outbreak and has chosen to struggle against it with solidarity, the government has sought to eliminate solidarity and organization of the people.

"Since the very onset of the appointment of trustees, we have been warning the public. We have been making calls to the public. If you regard this issue solely as the problem of Kurdish people, you will be mistaken.

"If we had shown the necessary solidarity back then and could have come together to stop this usurping and fascistic practice of the government, we would perhaps not be faced with this picture today."

Call to bar associations

Expressing the HDP's determination to "wage a struggle with every possible democratic means," HDP Chair Sancar has noted that "they will keep on struggling against all types of unlawful, unjust and undemocratic acts and war policies on democratic grounds."

Underlining that the issues of "democracy and peace in Turkey and in the region cannot be left only to the Kurds and HDP," Sancar has said, "So, we are reiterating our call to all democracy forces and everyone who wants to live in this country in peace: Let's stand together. Let's widen the paths of struggle. The policy of trustees is a policy of war."

Concluding his remarks, Mithat Sancar has also referred to the hinted changes to be introduced to the election methods of professional organizations such as medical chambers and bar associations. Within this context, he has called on "all lawyers, architects and engineers in favor of democracy to stand with them against coup plots."

Statement by HDP İstanbul Provincial Organization

"Trustee means a putschist regime, keep your hands off our will"

The HDP İstanbul Provincial Organization has also held a statement for the press in front of its office in Tarlabaşı, Beyoğlu. While the statement was also attended by HDP İstanbul MP Züleyha Gülüm, provincial executive Erkan Tepeli read out the statement for the press.

Noting that "even in the days of coronavirus pandemic, the monist regime has beeing trying to prevent aids to be made by municipalities and to make people hopeless by destroying their sense of solidarity," Tepeli has indicated that the government has now "taken over the HDP municipalities in a way that exceeds the practices in coup periods."

"Having established a trustee regime by usurping the will of over 30 million citizens' will in the last five years and attempting to make it permanent, the government is afraid of HDP municipalities," Tepeli has added.

"The end is near for the ones who want the Kurds go through dark days by usurping their will. We will keep on struggling against this dirty and dark mindset without bowing down an inch or taking any steps back."

What happened?

On May 15 (today), the Ministry of Interior has dismissed HDP's Siirt Provincial Co-Mayor Berivan Helen Işık, Baykan District Co-Mayor Ramazan Sarsılmaz, Kurtalan District Co-Mayor Baran Akgül, Iğdır Provincial Co-Mayor Yaşar Akkuş and Altınova Town Co-Mayor Casim Budak. Trustees have been appointed in places of dismissed HDP co-mayors.

In the last local elections on March 31, 2019, the HDP won 65 municipalities across Turkey, including three metropolitan municipalities, namely Van, Mardin and Diyarbakır. While trustees have been appointed to 45 HDP municipalities so far, six elected co-mayors were not given their certificates of election because they had been discharged from public service by statutory decrees. (EMK/SD)