Celik: Kurds to contribute to new self government model
Celik: Kurds to contribute to new self government model
Vice president of BDP (Peace and Democracy Party), Demir Celik attended the International Conference in Venice last week. The conference, promoted by the City of Venice, brought together representatives of the BDP, Basque Independent Left and Sinn Fein (Ireland) to discuss and share experiences in the different peace efforts.
ANF has interviewed Demir Celik on the coming general elections, in June, as well as on the democratic autonomy project.
President Celik, let's start from the general elections. What is the possible scenario and how it would affect the efforts towards peace which so far have been 'unilateral', considering the attitude of closure of the Turkish government.
I think the big problem as always in an election is the incredibly high threshold. 10% to enter the parliament is an obstacle hard to overcome not just for the BDP. If we look at the polls our party at the moment would reach 7%, 7,5%, therefore not enough to overcome the threshold as a party. At the last elections we run as independent candidates and this has clearly paid off. To run as independent means a bigger effort, because you have to get more votes, but we are confident that we could elect between 30 and 35 deputies. As to the peace efforts, clearly if the Turkish government will not take positive steps things will be harder and harder.
Democratic Autonomy, in other words a new concept of autonomy within existing borders. How to implement this ?
Looking back at history, peoples have been able to live for thousand of years without a state. Today, we think, should be possible to have some kind of self government within the existing states. In other words we think it is not necessary to create a new state in order for a people to exercise is right to self determination. It is more important to achieve fundamental rights rather than new structures which not necessarily respond to the needs of a society, or at least not anymore. Nation states as we know them are being overcome, globalisation has given an acceleration to the dissolving of questioning of the nation state model. What we are trying to promote is a kind of compromise, starting from a democratic framework. The European Union in a way is an attempt to overcome the nation state model. We think that more attention should be directed into local authorities. A people should be able to self govern itself in all aspects of life, from language, to politics, from culture to economy.
You talk about the European Union as an attempt to overcome the nation state model, but is it really?
Clearly this attempt is still at an embryonal stage. There are 27 States in the EU but hundred of peoples, languages, cultures. We constantly assist to a prevarication of the State over its people. We think that all the different peoples in the 27 states of the EU must find their representation and status within the EU. In this respect we believe that the European Union as it is now, it is not an adequate model. If Turkey will become member of the EU - and we are in favour of it - we think we will be able to give our contribution to rethink and design the new Europe.
ANF has interviewed Demir Celik on the coming general elections, in June, as well as on the democratic autonomy project.
President Celik, let's start from the general elections. What is the possible scenario and how it would affect the efforts towards peace which so far have been 'unilateral', considering the attitude of closure of the Turkish government.
I think the big problem as always in an election is the incredibly high threshold. 10% to enter the parliament is an obstacle hard to overcome not just for the BDP. If we look at the polls our party at the moment would reach 7%, 7,5%, therefore not enough to overcome the threshold as a party. At the last elections we run as independent candidates and this has clearly paid off. To run as independent means a bigger effort, because you have to get more votes, but we are confident that we could elect between 30 and 35 deputies. As to the peace efforts, clearly if the Turkish government will not take positive steps things will be harder and harder.
Democratic Autonomy, in other words a new concept of autonomy within existing borders. How to implement this ?
Looking back at history, peoples have been able to live for thousand of years without a state. Today, we think, should be possible to have some kind of self government within the existing states. In other words we think it is not necessary to create a new state in order for a people to exercise is right to self determination. It is more important to achieve fundamental rights rather than new structures which not necessarily respond to the needs of a society, or at least not anymore. Nation states as we know them are being overcome, globalisation has given an acceleration to the dissolving of questioning of the nation state model. What we are trying to promote is a kind of compromise, starting from a democratic framework. The European Union in a way is an attempt to overcome the nation state model. We think that more attention should be directed into local authorities. A people should be able to self govern itself in all aspects of life, from language, to politics, from culture to economy.
You talk about the European Union as an attempt to overcome the nation state model, but is it really?
Clearly this attempt is still at an embryonal stage. There are 27 States in the EU but hundred of peoples, languages, cultures. We constantly assist to a prevarication of the State over its people. We think that all the different peoples in the 27 states of the EU must find their representation and status within the EU. In this respect we believe that the European Union as it is now, it is not an adequate model. If Turkey will become member of the EU - and we are in favour of it - we think we will be able to give our contribution to rethink and design the new Europe.
