The Kurdistan People's Initiative made a written statement against the usurpation of Hakkari Municipality through the appointment of a trustee in the place of the democratically elected co-mayor, Mehmet Sıddık Akış, who was detained this morning and then suspended from duty by the Ministry of Interior.

The statement released by the Kurdistan People's Initiative on Monday said:

“The people of Kurdistan are facing a new fascist coup. In the 31 March local elections, the Kurdish people achieved a great victory and inflicted an unforgettable defeat on the AKP-MHP government. They won 78 municipalities as a result of great resistance. The AKP-MHP fascist government, which cannot digest this, is pursuing dastardly plans to avenge the defeat. Arresting the mayor of Hakkari is not recognising the will of the people of Hakkari. Appointing a trustee means insisting on colonialist politics. The Kurdish people showed their attitude against these policies at the ballot boxes on 31 March and then on the streets of Van. They will never submit to the trustee coup. As in Van, they will not allow their will to be usurped and will resist until they get their municipality back. We call on all our people living in Kurdistan and Europe to claim the will of the people of Hakkari and take to the streets until we take back our municipality.”