The Legal and Human Rights Commission of the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) released a written statement to mark the International Week of the Disappeared, observed from May 17 to 31.

Titled “Let us confront the reality of the disappeared,” the statement by the DEM Party’s Legal and Human Rights Commission recalled that the Human Rights Association (IHD) has marked the Week of the Disappeared since 1995, saying: 

“The goal has been to confront the reality of enforced disappearances in Turkey and around the world, to uncover the fate of the disappeared, and to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice. In this context, the Saturday Mothers, the families of the disappeared, and human rights defenders have maintained their sit-in protests since May 27, 1995. They have voiced the truth about the disappeared, most prominently in front of Galatasaray High School in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district, but also in Diyarbakır, Batman, Şırnak, Hakkari, Dersim, Izmir, Ankara, Adana, Mersin, and Van.”

An important phase has been reached in resolving the Kurdish question

On the occasion of the Week of the Disappeared, the DEM Party addressed the political authorities with the following message: “Turkey has entered an important phase in terms of a democratic and peaceful resolution to the Kurdish question. In response to Mr. Abdullah Öcalan’s February 27, 2025 Call for Peace and Democratic Society, the PKK announced at its May 12 Congress that it had dissolved itself and declared the end of its armed struggle. The reality of enforced disappearances in Turkey dates back to the Ottoman era, but the vast majority of cases occurred during the recent period of armed conflict. In this new phase of building peace and a democratic society, confronting the past is crucial. In this context, efforts for truth and justice, particularly those led by human rights organizations, must be allowed to continue without obstruction.”

Galatasaray Square must be returned to the families of the disappeared

The statement demanded that the Saturday Mothers be allowed to resume their weekly gatherings in front of Galatasaray High School in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district, where they have been demanding justice for 1,051 weeks. The restriction on the number of participants must be lifted, and police barricades removed, so that Galatasaray Square can once again be returned to the Saturday Mothers and the families of the disappeared, said the DEM Party, which also called on Turkey to become a party to the United Nations (UN) International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and to ratify the Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions.

A crucial step toward peace and democratization

The statement concluded: "Turkey must recognize the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. Enforced disappearance must be explicitly defined as a crime against humanity in the Turkish Penal Code. A truth commission should be established to investigate the fate of those who remain missing and to identify those responsible for their fates. Confronting the reality of enforced disappearances during the Week of the Disappeared would represent a crucial step toward building lasting peace and a truly democratic society."