A 6-day 'Respect for the Will March' from Van to Hakkari was launched on 3 July in protest at the appointment of a trustee on 3 June to Hakkari Municipality won by the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) in the 31 March local elections.

On its third day, the march continued in the Başkale district of Van, where a press statement was made.

Speaking in front of a banner that read "Respect for the will, no trustee", Van MP Zülküf Uçar said: "The will of the Kurdish people was usurped, and a coup d'état was carried out in the person of our Hakkari co-mayor Sıddık Akış. This is nothing but the manifestation of a century-old colonialist mind. For a century, the Kurdish people's will, existence, status and, finally, the right to elect and be elected have been taken away. This is a march demanding respect for the will against this fascist and colonialist mind. This is a march against the mindset that targeted Mr Abdullah Öcalan in İmralı and spread to all other prisons. We will continue to struggle and resist until rights and law are restored in the country and the status and mother tongue of the Kurdish people are truly constitutionally guaranteed."

Uçar stated that their action was not limited to the march, but that millions were behind them. He added: "Democracy and justice will be achieved through the struggle of the Kurdish people and their friends. Today we also honour Vedat Aydın, who was murdered by JİTEM (Gendarmerie Intelligence). We will continue resisting together with the people of Hakkari."