Demirtaþ opens first BDP meeting
Demirtaþ opens first BDP meeting
The first group meeting of the boycotting Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) was not broadcast live by the state television TRT.
While Kurdish politics is witnessing an historical phase in the post-election process, the attitude of the state towards Kurds has once more been shown at TRT 3 (Assembly channel) which has as usual closed down the live broadcasts of the BDP meeting today. The first group meeting of the BDP, which was formed following the boycott decision of the group against YSK's decision to strip off elected Hatip Dicle of his legal seat at the parliament, was held in Diyarbakýr today, as the group had earlier announced. Although the parliamentary group meetings are to be broadcast live on the Assembly channel TRT 3 in accordance with the assembly regulations, the significant and expected first meeting of the BDP was again not broadcast on the channel. The meeting was instead shown live on Roj TV which makes broadcast from Belgium for being banned in Turkey through illegal ways to develop pressure.
Giving information about the umbrella party, BDP Group Deputy Chairman Selahattin Demirtaþ said the followings; "If we can create an umbrella party which consists of all opponents in Turkey, the coming election will meet a new ruling party. We are not trying to occupy the country, we are making an effort to bring freedom to the government which has already occupied the society. The sense of the Democratic Autonomy is to return the stolen government back to the people. Our march is an act to change the government, it is not an operation to seize the country. We are offering a different alternative to the people of this country, no matter who rules it, and we are determined to change the government through our march and struggle."
Demirtaþ continued as follows; "The success of the Labor, Democracy and Freedom Block has demonstrated the insistence on democratic politics and the Block has been a hope for all the oppressed in Turkey where all opponents are intended to be bowed down by the government. Beginning from the establishment of the HEP (People's Labor Party), the Kurdish people have faced a number of obstacles; seven parties were closed, about 20 thousand members of these parties fell victim to unidentified murders, 100 thousands of citizens were put in prison, more than 3 thousand villages were burnt down, laws were violated against them and the door of the parliament was shut to them in each period. However, we still insist on democratic politics; which is an important point to be considered by the addressee. The power of the Block with 36 deputies is quite substantial for democratic politics within a process when everybody has irredeemably been confined to the AKP, waiting for the things to come. This achievement is the result of the 30-year struggle and labor truth and the result obtained by those whose names were written as heroes of the resistance since the Diyarbakýr prison period. We therefore attribute the election success to those who gave their lives for this purpose."
Translation: Berna Ozgencil
While Kurdish politics is witnessing an historical phase in the post-election process, the attitude of the state towards Kurds has once more been shown at TRT 3 (Assembly channel) which has as usual closed down the live broadcasts of the BDP meeting today. The first group meeting of the BDP, which was formed following the boycott decision of the group against YSK's decision to strip off elected Hatip Dicle of his legal seat at the parliament, was held in Diyarbakýr today, as the group had earlier announced. Although the parliamentary group meetings are to be broadcast live on the Assembly channel TRT 3 in accordance with the assembly regulations, the significant and expected first meeting of the BDP was again not broadcast on the channel. The meeting was instead shown live on Roj TV which makes broadcast from Belgium for being banned in Turkey through illegal ways to develop pressure.
Giving information about the umbrella party, BDP Group Deputy Chairman Selahattin Demirtaþ said the followings; "If we can create an umbrella party which consists of all opponents in Turkey, the coming election will meet a new ruling party. We are not trying to occupy the country, we are making an effort to bring freedom to the government which has already occupied the society. The sense of the Democratic Autonomy is to return the stolen government back to the people. Our march is an act to change the government, it is not an operation to seize the country. We are offering a different alternative to the people of this country, no matter who rules it, and we are determined to change the government through our march and struggle."
Demirtaþ continued as follows; "The success of the Labor, Democracy and Freedom Block has demonstrated the insistence on democratic politics and the Block has been a hope for all the oppressed in Turkey where all opponents are intended to be bowed down by the government. Beginning from the establishment of the HEP (People's Labor Party), the Kurdish people have faced a number of obstacles; seven parties were closed, about 20 thousand members of these parties fell victim to unidentified murders, 100 thousands of citizens were put in prison, more than 3 thousand villages were burnt down, laws were violated against them and the door of the parliament was shut to them in each period. However, we still insist on democratic politics; which is an important point to be considered by the addressee. The power of the Block with 36 deputies is quite substantial for democratic politics within a process when everybody has irredeemably been confined to the AKP, waiting for the things to come. This achievement is the result of the 30-year struggle and labor truth and the result obtained by those whose names were written as heroes of the resistance since the Diyarbakýr prison period. We therefore attribute the election success to those who gave their lives for this purpose."
Translation: Berna Ozgencil
