In an interview with ANF, Pir Sultan Abdal Cultural Association Chair Cuma Erçe said that Turkey was experiencing one of the deepest economic crises in its history, with poverty, hunger and misery becoming rampant.

Erçe remarked that his association declared open support for Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu against the one-man regime, and that they would fight for equal citizenship even if the one-man regime came to an end.

SECOND TOUR TURNED INTO A REFERENDUM

Erçe noted that the second round of the presidential elections to be held on May 28 turned into a referendum. He continued: “We are living in a country where anti-labour and anti-nature and misogynist policies and racist rhetoric have prevailed. The question is very clear: Are you in favour of darkness or the enlightenment? This should be posed to voters.”

STRUGGLE FOR EQUAL CITIZENSHIP

Erçe recalled that the Pir Sultan Abdal Cultural Association declared its open support for Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu against the one-man regime. However, he emphasized that supporting Kılıçdaroğlu did not mean approving the attitude and language that emerged during his election campaign. Erçe underlined that they would struggle for equal citizenship even if the one-man regime came to an end following the second round of the presidential election.

“The Alevi people, who have been oppressed for centuries, have always been on the side of the oppressed and human rights. With this awareness, political parties take Alevi votes for “granted”. We are not a pillar of any power; we will never be. Our demand is very clear: equal citizenship. We want this not only for the Alevis, but also for all oppressed groups in Turkey. Even if Kılıçdaroğlu is elected president, we will continue to fight for our rights.”

AGAINST RACISM

Erçe concluded: “We have criticism over certain issues that we will reveal after the election. The country is rapidly moving to the right. Racism has been revived as a deep economic crisis is hitting the country. Racism is promoted to make people forget what they are exposed to in daily life. We say that reactionary and racist rhetoric should not be used in order to get more votes. As an association, we are uncomfortable with rising racism. In the future, when the one-man regime ends, we will talk about these days in detail, but our priority is to unseat Tayyip Erdogan and to put an end to his one-man regime.”