In Turkey, three mayors from the People’s Equality and Democracy Party (DEM), the main pro-Kurdish left-wing party, were dismissed from their positions on Monday, accused of ” terrorism » by the authorities and to belong to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, the PKK. But these measures against pro-Kurdish mayors come at a time when the government seemed to want to relaunch peace efforts.
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With our correspondent in Ankara, Anne Andlauer
The mayors of the large cities of Mardin and Batman, and that of the locality of Helfeti, all three located in the southeast in Kurdish majority of the country, were replaced by state-appointed governors on Monday.
Since 2014, this is the third time that Ahmet Türk, 82, a veteran of the Kurdish political movement, has been elected mayor of Mardin. This is also the third time he has been removed from office by the authorities. He was also imprisoned for several months during previous mandates.
Deprived of their mayor’s chairs
The climate, however, seemed different this time: Turkey debate for a month on a peace process aimed at ending the conflict with the PKK, an armed group classified as ” terrorist » who claimed a deadly attack in Ankara two weeks ago. The government had designated as its interlocutor the legal pro-Kurdish party, the People’s Equality and Democracy Party (DEM), of which Ahmet Türk, known as a man of dialogue, is an essential figure.
However, he finds himself, like two other DEM mayors, deprived of his chair for “ membership in a terrorist organization “. Reason: trials opened several years ago and none of which were successful.
“ This power has no intention of resolving the Kurdish question »
Ahmet Türk reacted in front of Mardin town hall, barricaded by the police: “ If that’s what they call an “openness” towards the Kurds, it’s not one! This power extends its right hand and claps with its left. All this clearly shows that this power has no intention of resolving either the problem of democracy or the Kurdish question! “, he protested.
The pro-Kurdish party received the support of the main Turkish opposition party, the CHP, the big winner of the municipal elections in March, which denounced a ” cut “. Last week, the CHP mayor of Istanbul’s largest district himself been removed from officefor exactly the same reasons.
Also readAttack in Türkiye: an attempt to sabotage the ongoing easing of tension with the PKK?