Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) co-chair Mithat Sancar attended the Newroz celebrations in Diyarbakır (Amed).
Mesopotamia News Agency reports that Sancar and other HDP MPs commemorated the university student Kemal Kurkut, who was killed during Newroz 2017. Then Mithat Sancar spoke from the stage to the people of Diyarbakır and celebrated their Newroz in both the Kurdish and Turkish languages.
Declaring that the HDP will continue to resist government pressure, Sancar pointed to the crowd and said, “Even if you close the party, what would you do with this crowd? The supporters of the HDP can never be silenced”.
‘The HDP will make them lose again’
“The attacks against our party never end”, continued Sancar. “They never stop attacking us because this is what they know best. They are doing it because they lost during the elections. They did not forget the answer they received from the ballot boxes on 7 June. They should not forget the answer they received at ballot boxes on 31 March, 23 June”.
Sancar added that faith in their victory is still very strong despite all these attacks. “The HDP will make them lose again”, he said.
He also noted that these attacks against the HDP were not only against the Kurdish people, but also a threat to the future of peace and democracy in Turkey. “I am calling to all citizens of Turkey, let’s unite against them. They do not want peace but we need peace, we need to resist together shoulder to shoulder against them”.
Greetings to political prisoners
Mithat Sancar did not forget to mention the imprisoned HDP politicians and all the political prisoners in Turkey. “Salute my dear brother Selahattin Demirtaş, who has been held as a political hostage in prison in Edirne. Greetings to my comrade Figen Yüksekdağ. Greetings to the dear Selçuk Mızraklı, the will of the people of Amed. We send greetings to Gültan Kışanak. We send greetings to dear Leyla Güven and dear Musa Farisoğulları. I send you greetings as warm as the Newroz fire to all my comrades, whose names I cannot count. We send a thousand greetings to our dear Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu from here. Our support is with him. All our fellow political hostages are all our honour. All of them are our pride”.
Sancar mentioned the ongoing hunger strike in Turkey’s prisons, protesting the isolation of Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan, which has now reached its 115th day. “Their demands have to be met immediately. Isolation is a crime, what they are doing is a crime”.
‘We stand behind Öcalan’s 2013 message’
Sancar reminded the crowd of Abdullah Öcalan’s letter that was read at the 2013 Newroz celebrations in Diyarbakir. “A letter was read in Newroz 2013, witnessed by millions. Mr Öcalan’s letter was read in this square. ‘A new era will begin and weapons will be silenced and politics will speak’ was his very important message, and it still is important. He was saying that ‘we will build that future together’. We still stand by that call. We insist on democratic politics, we insist on a democratic solution to the Kurdish question”.
He continued by criticising the government for pursuing war politics. “They do not want democracy but they want to make their war policies dominant in this country. That is why they are imposing isolation in Imrali Island”.
‘Let Newroz be the symbol of national unity’
Finally, Sancar called for national unity among Kurds: “The way to peace passes from the freedom of Kurds in the Middle East. However, the freedom of Kurds is possible only with national unity among Kurds. All Kurds should defend the national unity for their freedom. Let Newroz be the symbol of national unity among Kurds”.
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