At the 1 May demonstration in Van, trade union federation KESK called for a solution to the Kurdish question, saying: "The budget spent on the war must be allocated to the people. That is why we are here today."
Thousands of people took part in a demonstration in Van on 1 May. The event was organised by the Confederation of Revolutionary Workers' Unions (DISK), the Confederation of Public Service Unions (KESK) and other professional associations such as the Bar Association and the Medical Association and was held under the slogan "We do the work, we have the say". Members of the journalists' associations DFG and MKG protested against the recent arrests of media professionals in Turkey with a banner reading "You can't silence us". Activists from the Free Women's Movement (TJA) took part in the demp with a large banner reading "Jin Jiyan Azadî" (Woman, Life, Freedom).
At the final rally inat Musa Anter Park, the uprising of the people of Van after the local elections at the end of March was addressed. Co-mayor Neslihan Şedal of the DEM Party said in a speech: "We were here in this square on 3 April and the people won." KESK Chairman Ahmet Karagöz condemned the police attack on demonstrators in Istanbul and said: "There is a concentrated crisis in our country. Millions of workers are being exploited. The people are expected to foot the bill for the crisis, while government supporters enrich themselves. In the elections on 31 March, the people clearly said no to this policy. The people of Van have said no twice, and I congratulate you all on that. We want peace and fraternity, and we want to live in a country where there is mother-tongue education and equal coexistence. The Kurdish question must be resolved, the inhumane measures in prisons must come to an end and the budget spent on the war must be allocated to the people. That is why we are here today."
The co-chair of the DEM Party, Tülay Hatimoğulları, said in a speech that unemployment and poverty are among the biggest problems in the country: "Almost fifty million people are living on the poverty line in Turkey today. The AKP is squandering all the country's wealth on its supporters in the palaces and considers hunger and poverty to be proper for the working population. This situation is also linked to the war policy. The government is responding with tanks and missiles to our demand for a peaceful and democratic solution to the Kurdish question, which has been going on for over forty years."
The rally ended with a concert by Fazıl Demir, Koma Janya and Babetna, accompanied by Kurdish traditional dance, govend.
