The Turkish government’s policies towards Kurds are even more oppressive than those seen during the 12 September 1980 coup, claims pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party’s Group Deputy Chair, Gülistan Kılıç Koçyiğit.
Speaking at a press conference in the Turkish Parliament on Monday, Koçyiğit responded to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s recent speech in Bitlis, an eastern city in Turkey, accusing the government of implementing policies that would make former coup leader Kenan Evren stand and applaud.
“If Evren were alive today, he would undoubtedly applaud the ruling coalition of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) for their anti-Kurdish policies,” Koçyiğit declared. She directly challenged Erdoğan’s assertion that discrimination based on identity and language is a thing of the past.
Koçyiğit underscored recent incidents where Kurdish individuals were arrested for dancing to Kurdish music and attacked for singing Kurdish songs. “How can the government claim that bans and pressures have been lifted, and that people are no longer discriminated against based on their origins and language?” she asked pointedly.
The DEM Party official also condemned Turkey’s recent attack on journalists in Sulaymaniyah (Silêmanî), Iraqi Kurdistan, which led to the deaths of Kurdish journalists Gülistan Tara and Hêro Bahadîn. “This is an extrajudicial execution. When you target civilian vehicles and settlements in another country’s airspace with armed UAVs, resulting in the deaths of press workers, journalists and local residents, it is nothing short of a war crime,” she emphasised.
Koçyiğit accused the government of committing war crimes and held the AKP-MHP alliance accountable for the killings. She argued that the government’s refusal to resolve the Kurdish issue through democratic means has effectively turned the region into a war zone.
The DEM Party representative also expressed deep concern over the escalating violence across Turkey. “The AKP is cultivating a culture of violence and lynching. This violence is spreading like an epidemic,” she warned, highlighting the rising violence against women, children, animals, migrants and the poor.
Addressing the treatment of Kurdish citizens, Koçyiğit rejected any notion of Kurds being treated as ‘shadow citizens.’ “We are millions from Edirne to Hakkari (Colemêrg), the rightful owners of this country. We are not mere guests in our homeland,” she affirmed.
Koçyiğit concluded by urging the Justice Ministry to investigate allegations of torture and isolation at Tekirdağ No. 2 Closed Prison, particularly the case of Abdulkadir Bozkurt, a Kurdish political prisoner who has reportedly been threatened with death and attacked by guards.
