The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) will contest Turkey's parliamentary elections on 14 May under the umbrella of the Green Left Party (Yeşil Sol Parti, YSP). This was announced by HDP co-chair Mithat Sancar at a meeting of his party's advisory committee in Istanbul on Thursday.

The HDP has been subject to banning proceedings before the Turkish Constitutional Court for two years. The party's request for a stay of proceedings until after the elections has been rejected. The YSP, founded in 2010, has been building party structures throughout the country in recent months in order to be admitted to the elections. The Labour and Freedom Alliance, which in addition to the HDP includes the Social Freedom Party (TÖP), Labour Movement Party (EHP), Federation of Socialist Councils (SMF), Workers' Party of Turkey (TİP) and Labour Party (EMEP), declared on Wednesday that it would not field its own candidate for the presidential elections.

AGAINST THE CORRUPTION AND CRUELTY OF THE EXISTING ORDER

Mithat Sancar explained that the alliance has revised its earlier decision of running its own presidential candidate due to the 6 February earthquake disaster: "We had announced that we would reconsider our policy of nominating a candidate for the presidential elections. Previously, our efforts to field candidates had entered the final stages, but the earthquake not only split the ground, but the order above it also came crashing down on the people with all its weight. All the rot, corruption and cruelty of this order has inflicted heavy losses on the people. Our losses are so great that we do not even know their number. According to official figures, it is said to be about 50,000 dead, but all who have seen the destruction know that it is much more. Our pain is great, our sorrow is deep. The destruction caused by the earthquake has also shown us how heavy and serious the responsibility is to change this order. As a result of the discussions we have had, the meetings we have had in our caucuses and the consultations we have had with various circles, we have decided not to field a candidate in the presidential election together with our alliance forces."

RUNNING FOR ELECTION AS HDP POSES SERIOUS RISKS

It is now necessary to further elaborate and strengthen the roadmap for the parliamentary elections, said the HDP co-chair, adding: "The Constitutional Court has rejected our request to postpone the date for the oral defence. In this case that has been pending for 24 months, the Constitutional Court has decided that it cannot wait another month. We know very well what this decision means. We see it as a continuation of the decision to hang the sword of Damocles over our heads during the elections. Now the ball is in the Constitutional Court’s court, or more precisely, in the government's court. In other words, from now on, the fate of the case is left to the government. We are aware that we do not have the right to leave the future of this country and the hope for democratic change to the government. There is a broad consensus that we should not do that. For this reason, we have come to the conclusion that there are serious risks in contesting elections as the HDP and have decided to contest elections under the umbrella of the Green Left Party."