HDK becoming a political party

11 October 2012 – ANF – People’s Democratic Congress to become a party aiming to be the voice for public opposition. People’s Democratic Congress (HDK) will apply to the Interior Ministry tomorrow to take part in the coming elections as a political party.

The establishment of the party, which will be called People’s Democratic Party (HDP), will be announced at a general assembly in Ankara on November 10-11 of this year. At the end of a two-day congress in Ankara last May, HDK issued a declaration which said that; “The HDK has decided to actively get involved in local elections, presidential elections and general elections by establishing a political party,” read the statement.

“The public opposition can only get stronger by pushing an open and direct political struggle against the ruling party,” the statement said, adding that the HDK will focus on the struggle for labor, democracy, ecology, gay rights and freedoms and create a ground for the co-movement of workers, the Kurdish liberation movement, oppressed minorities, women’s movement, human rights defenders, ecology movement, the opposition in Alewi community and the disabled.

The party will act as a structure within the Congress and adopt all its principles and political approaches.

The HDK was established in October 16, 2011 following cooperation between the BDP and leftist parties and groups in the June 12, 2011 general elections. The final statement of the congress said that; “In order to extinguish all kind of repression and injustice directed against our peoples, for the purpose of creating a Turkey in peace where we can live humanely, we, individuals as well as spokespersons and members of institutions, organizations, initiatives, associations, parties and movements against all kind of repression, exploitation and discrimination, who gathered following the call of the Congress Initiative, are announcing the foundation of the People’s Democratic Congress in the consciousness that conditions matured for the common struggle in order to obtain that the people create its own rule, that our differences are enriching us and makes us strong.”

In a statement in the Parliament last November, Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) Mersin MP Ertuğrul Kürkçü defined HDK as a community of fates and underlined the following points;

“HDK is of the opinion that Turkey’s facing with the reality of pluralist society with multi identities will be the most important opportunity to hinder the progress of mutual racism caused by the war and conflict and to create a realm of solution. We consider this multi-identity reality as Turkey’s most precious treasure in fight against racism. As HDK components, we will gather all objections to the monist sovereignty regime in Turkey around a real opposition movement, create an alternative government and we will see all together that it is not our fate to obey Erdoğan’s rules and to do politics as he wishes. Shoulder to shoulder with women, Kurds, laborers, those fighting for nature and life, youths, intellectuals, workers. We will see and show that another Turkey is possible.”