The Symposium on Economics in Democratic Autonomy, organized by the Democratic Society Congress (DTK), is taking place in Diyarbakýr. Speaking at the symposium, DTK co-chair Aysel Tuðluk has said, “Establishing institutions such as community councils, village communes, democratic self-government institutions in public services, equal representation of different religious, cultural and ethnic groups, system of public delegation, organizing congresses and women’s assemblies, we aim to transform the nation-state’s excluding technical representation practices in favor of the society.”

The symposium attracted a great crowd: economists and representatives from non-governmental organizations are making their speeches at the meeting. In her opening speech, DTK co-chair Aysel Tuðluk emphasized the importance of explaining the project of democratic autonomy, a project for a solution to live together. “It is a big democratic social transformation project that will also include a solution for the Kurdish issue, and not a suggestion for a selfish model that will impose a new hierarchy on the people. It is a project of living together that attempts to realize the potential of localisation instead of centralization and that favors the opportunity of living together of all different ethnic, cultural and religious groups in a democratic way as against the obligation of homogeneity,” explained Tuðluk.

Tuðluk has also stated that the project is neither only political nor economical. “All aspects of social reality, from economics to culture, from gender relations to human-nature relations, must be included in the project of democracy.”

Some discussions to be held in the symposium are: “Economics: Mathematics versus Politics”, “Reproduction of Concept: Economics, Government, State”, “Autonomy: Not a Policy of Finance but the Reconstruction of a New Society” and “Labour in the Mirror of the Ghost: Conjuration or Again.”