People's Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) announced its 31 March 2024 local government election manifesto at a hotel in Ankara. In addition to the municipal co-mayor candidates, many people attended the program. DEM Party Co-Chairs Tuncer Bakırhan and Tülay Hatimoğulları announced the manifesto.

 

KISANAK'S PHOTO IS IN THE PROTOCOL

 

The photo of imprisoner politician Gültan Kışanak, who is the DEM Party Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Co-mayor candidate, was placed on an empty chair in the protocol. Additionally, many people in the hall carried Kışanak's photo.

 

REACTION TO ISOLATION

 

Written posters reacting to the isolation of PKK Leader Abdullah Ocalan were also placed in many parts of the hall. A poster was hung "DEM comes to end the isolation". The event, which started with a moment of silence in memory of those who lost their lives in the struggle for freedom, continued with a short speech by both co-chairs.

 

TO FREE CITIES WITH LOCAL DEMOCRACY

 

In the presentation titled "To Free Cities with Local Democracy", Hatimoğulları said: "We are going to the 2024 local elections in a conjuncture where great upheavals are experienced in our region and our world. War, violence, hunger, poverty, migration, disasters and many risks caused by capitalist civilization affect nature. It continues to threaten society and cities. The way to deal with these disasters is to increase common grounds for struggle against these dominant understandings at all levels, starting from the local level and to build the world we dream of together with the people." 

 

Hatimoğulları said: "Those who rule Turkey are leaning on the new spiral of violence and war that is spreading all over the world. They do not recognize peace. In the Kurdish issue, they feed on war and chaos at home and abroad. They reject the Istanbul Convention. They are deepening their regime that ruthlessly exploits the workers. They are destroying immigrants and refugees in all kinds of ways. It deprives young people of their rights. It pushes young people into a futureless situation. Local government elections offer us a unique opportunity to cultivate an egalitarian and libertarian mind against this ruling mind, from the place closest to the people, right from the locality and to spread it to the whole country. We are holding the 2024 local elections; We see it as a threshold where the flag of equality and freedom will rise against colonialist and discriminatory policies, voices of peace against war will grow louder and local democracies will become stronger against centralization."

 

'WE ARE COMING TO TAKE BACK WHAT BELONGS TO THE PEOPLE'

 

Bakırhan said: "Our march towards democratic local governments continues with great hope, faith and determination. During our local government experiences, we will create cities and local communities where people will live freely. We have tried to create units. We have written bilingual municipalism, co-mayor system and local democracy experiences in the history of this country. We are coming to enlarge all these achievements and move them forward together with our people. We have won many times, we have succeeded many times. We will win again, we will succeed again. We are coming to take back what is ours, the people's. We are coming to build something better together."

 

MULTILINGUAL MUNICIPALITY

 

Hatimoğulları listed items regarding the party's understanding of local government. Hatimoğulları said the following about the criteria on which the party is based:

 

* Feels responsible for all the problems of society and takes initiative to produce solutions.

* It defends and fights for the removal of reservations to the European Charter of Local Self-Government and other universal law agreements.

* Conducts studies to organize the local economy.

* It prioritizes saving municipality from sexist and hierarchical approaches.

* Accepts youth as the basic participatory dynamic and subject of cities.

* It gives priority to the disabled, the elderly, children and disadvantaged groups in social life.

* It sees it as one of its main priorities for people to live their own culture freely.

* It defends multilingual municipalism.

* It advocates the removal of obstacles to all immigrants and refugees from exercising their rights defined by international law.

* It defends and undertakes all economic, social and political rights of workers and laborers.

* It advocates and supports the free living, development, organization and establishment of faith centres of all faiths.

 

WHAT DOES DEM PARTY DEFENDS

 

"What do we defend with our understanding of local government?" Hatimoğulları, listed the following:

 

* Political, administrative and financial autonomy in local governments,

* The right of all citizens to the city,

* Ensuring equal participation of women in local governments and creating women's cities,

* It defends every citizen's right to housing and that building houses that are compatible with nature and resistant to earthquakes and disasters is one of the basic duties of local governments,

* To provide free public transportation opportunities to students and disadvantaged groups and cheap public transportation opportunities to other citizens,

* Creating free and qualified accommodation opportunities for university students,

* Municipal councils and provincial councils serve as institutions that produce policies, perform auditing duties and reflect the tendencies and demands of the people,

* Opening nurseries for children providing education in their mother language,

* We advocate that different peoples and beliefs are represented in local governments and their cultural needs are met.

 

PLURALIST ASSEMBLY WILL BE CREATED

 

Emphasizing that they reject the concept of serving a single religion and sect and accept the freedom of belief and worship of different religions and sects, Hatimoğulları continued as follows:

 

* It argues that a good city and countryside is only possible with a local government that meets the needs of the disabled, the elderly and children and takes the necessary steps for this.

* With the aim of an ecological society, it creates suitable conditions for animals to live in their natural lives.

* In DEM Party Municipalities with our Democratic, Ecological, Gender-Liberal and Socialist Local Government Approach; We will provide equal service to all city citizens without discrimination of religion, language, sect, race and gender. We will support and expand village, neighbourhood and city councils, city forums, women and youth councils. We will hold parliamentary meetings open to the public and ensure the participation of democratic mass organizations in the meetings.

 

EMPHASIS ON LOCAL DEMOCRACY

 

Bakırhan emphasized local democracy for a democratic republic. Bakırhan said: "Local democracy is the architecture of governing with the people, not against the people, based on the uniqueness of each local." 

Bakırhan listed the following headings:

 

* Local democracy is the key to solving not only the problems experienced locally, but also the problems arising from centralism.

* It's Time to Permanently End the Trustee Regime for Local Democracy: We Will Take Back What Belongs to the People!

* We will not allow the will of the people to be usurped through trustees again. We will never accept this unlawfulness.

* We are ready to take back what you took from us through extortion.

* We are coming to take back what belongs to the people.

 

FREE WOMEN'S VILLAGES

 

Hatimoğulları emphasized that local democracy starts with women and that they will continue "women's libertarian municipalism". Hatimoğulları listed the following under this title:

 

* In DEM Party municipalities, women are organized uniquely and autonomously for a free and equal life.

* We will expand co-mayor and equal representation.

* In order to effectively implement women's policies, we will reopen the Women's Policy Departments and Women's Policy Directorates.

* Administrative leave for working women on March 8, International Women's Day and November 25, Day of Solidarity and Elimination of Violence Against Women; It is a free transportation day for all women.

* We will purify cities from discrimination, inequality and sexism.

* We will wage an effective fight against male violence in every field.

* We will build together with women the opportunities of a life without violence through "free women's villages" that will support the social, economic and cultural development of women.

 

YOUTH POLICIES 

 

Referring to youth policies, Bakırhan stated the following:

 

* In DEM Party municipalities; Youth will be the ones guiding the administration, not being used as tools in our local governments.

* In order to find a solution to the economic problems experienced by students, scholarship opportunities will be created in partnership with all the dynamics of the city.

* Educational support houses that directly contribute to the education of youth will be updated and expanded.

* We will establish university dormitories, social facilities, sports schools, free soup kitchens and free laundries for all university students in need, especially young women.

* We will remove the obstacles that make it difficult for young people to have voice, authority, decision-making and participation in our local governments.

* Dormitories will be built according to the educational needs of the students, no student will be left stranded and every student will benefit from the right to accommodation free of charge.

* We will create permanent employment areas to prevent unemployment, which is one of the biggest problems of young people.

* We will fight addiction targeting youth.

 

URBAN PLANNING

 

Hatimoğulları listed the following headings:

 

* We will continue to defend citizens' 'right to locality', including rural areas, against the central government's urban-rent approach.

* City centres and squares where citizens from all walks of life can come together; We will turn it into common areas that can be used for social, political, artistic and economic activities.

* We will create 'Urban Aesthetics Boards'.

* We will establish rural-urban balance. We will not allow agricultural areas to be opened for development.

* It will carry out pilot municipal practices such as barrier-free city, energy producing city, women's city, ecological city; We will implement the practices under each heading in at least one of our municipalities.

* We will implement earthquake-resistant, healthy and economical housing projects.

* We will establish Disaster Departments/Directorates in all our municipalities to solve problems that may arise before, during and after the disaster.

* In order to minimize the impact of disasters, we will create Disaster Budgets in line with the strategic plan to be made within the municipality.

* We will not allow construction in areas that pose a risk to the ground, such as stream beds, fault lines and swamps.

* We will build disaster-resistant cities and be ready for disasters together with the public.

 

Bakırhan stated the following regarding urban transformation and development plans:

 

* We will implement "Healthy, Safe Building Projects on Site" in risky settlements, with the approval of the public.

* We will fight together with our people against the dispossession of the people and the conversion of urban land into capital by turning it into a source of profit through Law No. 6306 and similar regulations.

* We will work to ensure that everyone owns a home through social housing projects.

* By reducing the cost of housing, we will make it easier for all segments of society to own solid, healthy and safe housing, and we will give priority to women.

 

ECONOMY AND TRANSPORTATION

 

Hatimoğulları emphasized that they will expand "economic and ecological community transportation" in cities. Hatimoğulları said the following:

 

* We will increase cheap, safe and healthy public transportation opportunities for our citizens in all our municipalities.

* It will increase healthy and ecological walking paths for pedestrians; We will organize these roads according to the daily needs of the public and all disadvantaged groups.

* By expanding the light rail system in cities, we will both alleviate traffic problems and improve the public transportation network.

* We will not grant zoning licenses to large projects that constitute ecocide crimes or to investment and construction activities that will disrupt the integrity of the ecosystem.

* We will close forests, pastures, plateaus and winter quarters to development unconditionally.

* We will protect city parks, groves and orchards.

* We will create Ecological Zones closed to motor vehicle traffic in cities.

* We will not open burned and destroyed forest areas to construction.

* We will establish emergency response units within fire departments and 'Forest Houses' with the necessary materials and equipment in rural areas.

 

Bakırhan listed the following articles regarding the right to access water:

 

* We will fight against industrial waste that pollutes and dries streams.

* We will produce Drought Maps.

* We will take action to eliminate fossil fuel use to create climate-friendly cities.

* We will organize various campaigns to create a culture of savings instead of a culture of waste.

* DEM Party accepts the principles in the Declaration of Animal Rights and plans local government activities with this perspective.

* Will cooperate with animal rights advocacy institutions, professional chambers and lawyers; We will organize awareness trainings in every neighbourhood.

* We will close shelters that leave animals to die, zoos, dolphin parks, experimental laboratories, and residences and workplaces that produce and sell animals.

 

Referring to budget, poverty and social policies, Hatimoğulları said:

 

* We will expand local democracy through participatory economy.

* We will expand democratization and localization in the economic field as well as in the political field.

* We will create participatory, gender-sensitive and ecological budget models with the principle of 'Budget is Right and Belongs to the People'.

* We Will Implement Social Economy for Strong Local Democracy.

* We Will Implement Liberating Social Policies.

* We will not allow any of our citizens to sleep hungry and on the streets in our cities. We will establish soup kitchens and home delivery units. We will open living houses for homeless people and those living on the streets.

* We will apply positive discrimination to impoverished areas.

* We will implement a local government economy that is based on local collective management, based on the people and will equip the people's lives with all their needs.

 

AGRICULTURAL PROJECTS

 

Bakırhan emphasized that they advocate "the protection and development of subsistence, local, ecological agriculture and animal husbandry by local governments." Bakırhan said the following with this title:

 

* We will establish Agriculture Departments-Directorates.

* We will popularize the 'I Want to Be Satisfied Where I Was Born' project.

* We will expand disintermediary markets, barter markets and their e-market equivalents.

* We will bring the lands where no production has been made or where production has been abandoned into agricultural production.

* We will prevent the use of pesticides, chemical fertilizers and genetically modified seeds in agriculture. We will establish 'Local Seed Houses'. We will cover the energy and water consumption required for small and medium-sized agricultural production free of charge.

* We will support breeders and farmers who are negatively affected by the pasture and plateau bans and try to compensate their losses.

* We will facilitate access to natural and cheap food for all urban citizens.

* We will establish Healthy Food Units to ensure coordination between the city's non-governmental organizations, public institutions and our people for food safety.

* We will continue our efforts to transition to a city model that is self-sufficient in food.

 

ASSOCIATIONS FOR FIGHTING POVERTY

 

Hatimoğulları said, "Poverty is the common policy of the state and capital, we will fight against it." Hatimoğulları said:

 

* We will put an end to poverty and unemployment by strengthening the local economy with the principle of self-sufficiency.

* We will expand Poverty Fighting Associations.

* We will expand Food and Clothing Bank practices.

* We will make services such as education, health, transportation and housing accessible to the disadvantaged segments of the society.

* We Will Build the Cities of Labor with Urban Workers.

* We will guarantee the right to union organisation.

* We will create new employment opportunities for workers who were dismissed from their jobs by statutory decrees.

* We will prioritize women's employment by adopting the principle of 'equal pay for equal work' in local governments.

* We will implement a 50 percent  women's quota in employment.

* We will provide free nursery services for all municipal employees.

* We will consider March 21 as a paid holiday for all employees, March 8 and November 25 for women employees and we will provide free transportation.

 

DISABLED INDIVIDUALS ARE NOT FORGOTTEN

 

Bakırhan noted that as DEM Party, they defend local democracy and egalitarian and liberal social policies against discriminatory and hierarchical urbanization. Bakırhan said the following in this section:

 

* In all our municipalities, priority will be given to the disabled, the elderly, children, women, the poor, refugees and other disadvantaged groups. We will not allow public spaces to be commercialized and turned into profit.

* We will build guesthouses for those coming from outside the city to city and district centres for treatment purposes.

* We will increase the number of public bread factories.

* We will establish social service campuses in all metropolitan cities.

* We will make a new life possible for the disabled, starting locally, together with the disabled!

* We will establish Disabled Persons Departments in metropolitan municipalities and Disabled Persons Branch Directorates in other municipalities.

* We will create employment for disabled people in all units and at all levels.

* We will establish Life Support Centres that will provide free and uninterrupted service.

* We will open sign languages courses.

* We will put an end to the complexity of transportation lines by dividing transportation vehicles into colour codes according to regions and neighbourhoods for those whose mother language is not Turkish, those who are illiterate, the elderly, those with diseases such as Alzheimer's / Dementia and all disabled people.

 

Hatimoğulları said, "We will prepare a transformation budget for the accessibility of architectural structures, websites, legislation and other programs such as residences, sinks, elevators, underpasses, overpasses, sidewalks, parks, car parks, buildings, etc. within the jurisdiction of local governments."

 

* We will create multilingual announcement and direction tables using sound, colour and Braille Alphabet in all public transportation vehicles.

* We will develop policies that secure the lives of disabled women in education, business and politics.

* Children; They are equal subjects of free and democratic life. We will make every city a children's city.

* We will reopen children's institutions that were usurped by trustees and closed by decrees. We will structure the Child Policy Departments and Children's Assemblies together with children.

 

CHILDREN'S ADVISORY BOARD

 

Bakırhan stated that they will ensure the equal participation of children in urban reconciliation by establishing a "Children's Advisory Board" and added:

 

* We will prevent child labour.

* We will establish ecological children's cooperatives together with children.

* We will implement Children's Academies and implement child-sensitive budgeting.

* We will make urban transportation and participation in cultural events free for all children up to the age of 18.

* We will provide all-day service with multilingual nurseries.

* We will expand child care services.

* We will build "Fairy Tale Houses/Play Houses/Mala Çirokbêjan" and "Children's Music Houses" to ensure the transfer of collective memory to new generations.

* We will expand mobile and free oral and dental health screening activities in all schools and villages.

 

RETIREES AND ELDERLY PEOPLE

 

Hatimoğulları emphasized that they will build "liveable cities" for retirees and the elderly:

 

* We will ensure that retirees and elderly people can participate in social and cultural activities in every neighbourhood and that a sufficient number of appropriately trained personnel are employed.

* We will expand the nursing home service, open new nursing homes, support it with services such as home maintenance and repair, house cleaning and hot food delivery to homes, fight against age-based discrimination, and increase age-friendly city practices.

 

IMMIGRANTS AND REFUGEES

 

Bakırhan emphasized that they will build cities where immigrants and refugees can breathe. Bakırhan said:

 

* With the principle of 'Every place in the world belongs to everyone', it will fight against the exploitation of immigrant and refugee children; We will take measures to ensure that they receive education in equal, non-violent conditions and in their native language. We will provide free and anonymous health services in the health centres of our municipalities.

* We will end orientation-based discrimination!

* We will improve urban life for all oppressed and socially excluded groups in line with the principles of participation, equality, non-discrimination and inclusion.

* Ensuring that individuals with sexual orientations and gender identities different from the dominant one have equal participation in local politics, good health, housing and decent employment opportunities; We will develop policies to ensure that they can use public spaces freely and safely and have access to locally offered services.

 

HEALTH AND SOCIAL POLICIES

 

Hatimoğulları stated that they defend health and social policies and socialist municipalism. Hatimoğulları listed the things to do in this regard as follows:

 

* We will establish service points such as 'laundry house', 'tandır house', 'study house', 'nursery' and 'reading house' in the neighbourhoods for those in need to use.

* We will provide 15 m3 of water per month free of charge to those in need.

* We will produce social housing for urban citizens who lack the right to housing.

* Through 'Consumption Cooperatives', we will support the products of individual farmers and the products of "Public Farms" to reach low-income households, especially those living in the cities of the region, at affordable prices.

* We will continue to provide free of charge municipal services needed by centres of worship such as mosques, Cemevi, churches and synagogues.

* Provide funeral and cemetery services free of charge; We will continue to establish condolence houses in all villages and neighbourhoods.

 

MULTILINGUAL MUNICIPALITY

 

Bakırhan stated that they will continue their multilingual municipality practices. Bakırhan announced the following projects under this title:

 

* It will establish nurseries, courses and libraries where multilingual story books, children's games and illustrated dictionaries are used; We will re-implement multilingual cultural projects.

* We will continue to make our municipalities' correspondence, announcements and press releases multilingual.

* By establishing Language Preservation and Development Directorates, we will work to protect and develop Kurdish, Syriac, Armenian, Arabic and other local languages.

* We will continue to name cities, neighbourhoods, villages, streets and avenues in multiple languages. We will ensure that billboards and signs in public spaces are multilingual.

* We will keep our cultural richness alive in all our localities.

* We will establish Mobile Libraries in all cities. We will facilitate citizens' access to culture and arts in villages and cities by organizing mobile culture and art events.

* We will continue to build cultural venues such as Dengbêj House.

 

Hatimoğulları said: "We call for a healthy, peaceful and free society with sports everywhere, at all ages."

* We will prevent sports from being a demonstration of sexist, nationalist and chauvinist policies and a tool of capital exploitation.

* We will support local and local management of sports.

* We will continue to open indoor sports halls, stadiums and neighbourhood fields so that everyone can benefit.

* We will increase the number of swimming pools for women, youth and children.

 

In his closing speech, Bakırhan said: "We will succeed by putting an end to trustee usurpation, theft of will and lucrative municipalism with broken bulbs in cities that are left without roads and water. We will achieve free cities with local democracy."

 

Hatimoğulları, made the following emphasis: "On this path that we set out to free cities with local democracy, we will come to power in every region of Turkey with our 'Win-Win' formula. We will send the trustees to the Palace and eliminate the destruction they have created. Without saying you, me, we. We will all win with the DEM Party. We will definitely succeed."

 

GROUP PHOTO

 

At the end of the program, the speech of imprisoned politician Gültan Kışanak was shown, in which she said: "We will make the world difficult for those who establish palaces and sultanates.”

Then, the co-chair candidates were called to the stage and a group photo was taken.