The Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) Child, Labour and Education Commissions held a press conference at the party headquarters in Ankara regarding the new school year.

DEM Party Children's Commission Co-Spokesperson İhsan Seylan and DEM Party Deputy Co-Chair for Labour and Social Policies Commission Sevtap Akdağ Karahalı spoke at the meeting.

Seylan pointed out that the economic collapse caused by the AKP-MHP government affects children the most.

“The construction of a good and free present and future depends on a good education system,’ Seylan emphasised, adding, “The burden on the shoulders of thousands of children who have started to work to cover their school expenses is getting heavier and heavier.”

Sevtap Akdağ Karahalı said, “The government is trying to legitimise the labour of children through MESEM (Vocational Education Centre). They have created a system where children die in factory corners. There are 6.5 million children in severe poverty in Turkey and one out of every 5 children in Turkey cannot access sufficient and nutritious food.”

Sevtap Akdağ Karahalı drew attention to the assimilation policies and said: “As the 2024-2025 school year begins, the right to education in one's mother tongue is still a hundred-year-old problem. Millions of children will start and continue this school year without being able to use their mother tongue. The right to education in one's mother tongue, one of the most fundamental human rights, is guaranteed by international conventions. However, in Turkey, this right continues to be usurped for Kurdish, Arab, Armenian, Syriac, Circassian and Laz peoples and a monolingual education model is implemented. It is unacceptable that the demand for education in the mother tongue is reduced to elective courses. We remind the government of international resolutions on fundamental rights and international conventions.”

Sevtap Akdağ Karahalı concluded: “Let's strengthen the struggle for an equal and free system in education together.”