No other NATO member would accept such a situation. It would also jeopardize dying hopes for Turkey’s European Union ascension bid.īut the HDP cannot continue its rights struggle within Turkey’s political system while refusing to sever its ties with a proscribed terrorist organization. In April, the HDP submitted its defense to the Constitutional Court, repudiating the charges.Ī ban ahead of next year’s elections would unfairly silence millions of pro-peace Kurdish voices and play directly into the hands of PKK fighters spoiling for armed violence against Turkish targets. Two-thirds of the court’s members are required to agree on a decision, however, it is not yet clear when the review will take place. Turkey’s Constitutional Court will review a case seeking to ban the HDP – the third-largest party in parliament, with a mandate of 12% of national voters – on grounds of its links to terrorism. Time could be limited as Turkey moves to ban Kurdish political parties. Whether the Kurds can separate legitimate demands for political rights and continued armed insurgency will determine the fate of future generations of Kurdish people in Turkey and across the Middle East. However, it is unclear how far the plea will resonate within the wider Kurdish movement, which has been angered by the events at the Madrid summit. #Your story isn t over freeHis words were a clear call for the Kurdish opposition to act like an autonomous political party, free from external interference by PKK militants based in the Qandil Mountains in northern Iraq. He also called on his own party to embrace Turkey and seek an honorable peace within the unity of the country. In the letter published on July 1 in the pro-Kurdish daily Yeni Yasam, which is banned in Turkey, Demirtas called for “change,” urging Turkey’s opposition parties to find new paths to unite in a joint effort against Erdogan’s governing Justice and Development Party (AKP). From his prison cell in the western city of Edirne, the jailed former head of the HDP, Selahattin Demirtas, wrote a passionate letter stating that politics and violence cannot go together.ĭemirtas was imprisoned on charges of support for terrorism after an urban guerrilla insurgency orchestrated by the PKK and its affiliates in the summer of 2016 in parts of southeastern Turkey. Just look at the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democracy Party (HDP). While Turkey might have gained ground on the international dimensions of its fight against Kurdish separatists at the NATO summit, there are still profound challenges in the domestic dynamics of the Kurdish question that will gain fresh urgency in the next election cycle. In the past, their votes have swayed tight elections. Kurdish voters have been a significant block in previous polls. Erdogan has his own challenges at home ahead of next year’s presidential and parliamentary elections, coinciding with the centennial of the founding of the Turkish Republic in 1923. The domestic implications of what was arguably a foreign-policy win will continue to play out over the coming months in Turkey. Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson condemned the images, saying “posing with such flags is extremely inappropriate.” Although the Left Party is not in government, it helps prop up the Social Democrat cabinet. In early July, members of the Left Party posed with flags from the PKK, as well as its Syrian offshoot YPG (People’s Defense Units), which has received arms in the fight against Islamic State (ISIS) from Western countries such as the US.Īlthough left-wing members of the Swedish parliament have historically shown some sympathy to the group, the latest incident, which took place during a political meeting on the island of Gotland, was designed to call attention to the NATO summit. Turkey is demanding the extradition of more than 70 people it describes as terrorists from Sweden. In Sweden, the Green Party and the Left Party warned against the risks of allying with Turkey. Since the summit, Swedish and Finnish lawmakers have faced backlash from political opponents, mainly those on the left.
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