Repression against the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) continues unabated. By order of the Turkish Ministry of the Interior, 15 members of the HDP factions in the city councils of three districts in the province of Erzurum have been removed from office. In the affected districts, the HDP won the local elections last March by a large majority of votes. With the most recent wave of depositions, the AKP was able to secure a majority.

 

In the Karayazı district municipality, in addition to co-mayor Burhanettin Şahin, Erdal Bayram, Yakup Aras, Yüksel Kişi, Abdurrehim Göksu, Mahmut Çimendağ, Alaattin Kırtıl and Emel Turan were deposed. The number of HDP councilors in the district thus declined from 13 to 8. In the meantime, co-mayor Melike Göksu has been in prison since September 18 for terrorism accusations.

 

In the Tekman district, Cemalettin Şengül, İsmet Karabulut and Ali Sait Bingül have been deposed, bringing the number of HDP councilors down from 9 to 6. In the local elections of March 31, HDP mayoral candidate Müzahit Karakuş won by majority of votes but was denied mandate on the grounds of his dismissal by a statutory decree.

 

In the Karaçoban district, Remziye Sönmez, Kazım Erhan, Murat Yaprak and Ekrem Çintimur have been deposed. The reason given for the suspensions is that criminal investigations are underway against those concerned.

 

23 HDP MAYORS JAILED

 

Yet before the local elections of 31 March, the Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan had announced his intention to take back all HDP municipalities in the event of an election victory. Thus, the Turkish government is practising a policy aptly described by the Kurdish population as a "coup".

 

Since 19 August 2019, 32 HDP-run municipalities have been placed under trustees by the AKP regime. 23 mayors have been put in prison. Six elected mayors were not even able to take office after the elections because the election committee refused to recognize them. In their place, the AKP candidates were appointed mayors despite their election defeat.