Pro-Kurdish party first silent, then harsh on minister’s remarks

There was a whiff of excitement in the air Monday at the Diyarbakır headquarters of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party, or DTP, as Interior Minister Beşir Atalay began speaking about the government’s “Kurdish move.” But by the end of the day the DTP’s response was harsh, accusing the government of “ruling out the Kurds.”

As the DTP leader Ahmet Türk and deputies were eagerly waiting for Atalay’s press conference to start, the subject of small talks was Super League club Diyarbakırspor”s surprise 2-0 victory at Sivasspor away. But the talks immediately stopped once the minister started to talk.

DTP leader Türk, accompanied by DTP deputies Selahattin Demirtaş, Osman Özçelik, Hasip Kaplan, Gültan Kışanak, Akın Birdal, İbrahim Binici, Nezir Karabaş and Nuri Yaman, watched the minister’s remarks on TV carefully, with often taking notes. Türk was reluctant to comment on Atalay”s words, citing the rally on Tuesday organized by his party in Diyarbakır.

“The minister did not announce any solid plans, and we will tell the public our thoughts at [Tuesday’s] rally,” Türk told reporters, but he was hopeful about the current situation.

“The people expect the Kurdish issue to be solved in a peaceful, democratic way,” he said. “As politicians, we must carry hope. We must lead the people; it is our duty to do so.”

The DTP leader said they would be carefully following every effort to solve the Kurdish issue, and contribute to those efforts as much as possible.

Later in the day, DTP leader and deputies joined hundreds of party members in Diyarbakır”s Sümer Park, who were to spend the night at the park for the “Sept. 1 Peace Watch.”

Having spent some time to think over the minister’s remarks, and buoyed by the support at the park, the DTP leader was much harsher.

“The remarks of the minister have created surprise and despair,” Türk told his audience. “The remarks did not include the democratic initiative and completely ignored the Kurds.”

According to Türk, the government did not take the opinions of the NGOs and Kurds into account, but instead “valued the opinions of those it could not even meet.”

“Everybody should know that this is not the way to solve the Kurdish issue,” he said.

Many DTP representatives earlier demanded changes in the Turkish constitution to redefine citizenship and allow education in Turkish. At his press conference, Atalay said a constitutional amendment is not currently on the table, but Türk reiterated his party’s demand.

“The constitution must change. It is impossible to have a democratic initiative with the current constitution,” Türk said.

Atalay said at the pres conference that the aim of the initiative was “purification,” and Türk criticized that remark, too.

“Such policies have been in process for 30 years now,” he said. “They have not solved anything. There is no point in insisting.”

Türk said he and his party would still work for peace.

“Peace is inevitable,” he said. “We will continue our peace efforts despite the government’s mentality, starting with [Tuesday’s] rally.”

The DTP is organizing a rally Tuesday in Diyarbakır for “World Peace Day,” aiming to gather 1 million people in the Southeast’s biggest city.

DTP Siirt deputy Osman Özçelik was more optimistic of the government’s stance, noting Atalay”s remarks were generally positive. “The minister’s remarks were positive in general,” he said. “Although he did not say anything on the details of the project, I find his words on the necessity of a solution very important.”

Party members also watched Atalay”s press conference on a TV screen in the DTP”s Diyarbakır headquarters, and most of them were unsatisfied. One party member said he expected the minister to announce a detailed plan. “To solve this issue, the government should address the notified parties, which are the Kurdistan Workers’ Party [PKK], Abdullah Öcalan [the PKK’s imprisoned leader] and the DTP deputies, the representatives of the people,” he argued.