Sezgin Tanrıkulu, Deputy Chair of the Turkish Parliament’s Human Rights Committee and a member of Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), has vehemently criticised the ongoing Kobanê trial, describing it as a “political revenge” case.
During a speech in parliament on Wednesday, Tanrıkulu stated that the detention of former Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) co-chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ amounted to them being held as political hostages. “Despite being officially remanded in custody, they are not, to me, judicial detainees, but hostages held by the state in the guise of legality,” he said.
Tanrıkulu said that many judicial cases in Turkey are politically rather than legally motivated. He referred to his own experiences as a Kurd and a legislator, especially in response to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s past remarks about the northern Syrian town of Kobanê, which he found deeply offensive. “These cases were initiated not on legal grounds, but on significant political grounds, reflecting on our recent history,” he added.
The speech also addressed broader issues concerning the judiciary’s role in Turkey’s political conflicts, particularly against the Kurdish community. Tanrıkulu warned that the handling of the Kobanê case could leave a lasting stain on the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), predicting that history would judge today’s actions harshly. “The way this case has been managed will be recorded as a significant mark of infamy against the AKP, especially in matters relating to the Kurdish issue,” he stressed.
