The Spokesperson of the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), Ayşegül Doğan, held a press conference at the party's headquarters on current developments.

Doğan condemned the imprisonment of Ahmet Özer, CHP Mayor of Istanbul’s Esenyurt district municipality, and the usurpation of his office by a state-appointed trustee to replace the democratically elected mayor.

In the meantime, the Central Executive Committee (MYK) of the DEM Party will convene in Istanbul today against the usurpation of Esenyurt Municipality. The arrest of Özer and the usurpation of the municipality will be on the agenda of the Central Executive Committee to be convened under the leadership of the co-chairs. Following the meeting at the DEM Party Esenyurt district building, a statement is expected to be made by the party. After the MYK meeting, DEM Party Co-Chair Tülay Hatimoğulları, members of the MYK, Parliamentary Group, provincial and district organisations will participate in the demonstration in front of Esenyurt Municipality at 16.00. The DEM Party called on all its organisations in Istanbul to take part in the protest action. On the other hand, the DEM Party called on its provincial and district organisations across Turkey and Kurdistan to protest the usurpation of Esenyurt Municipality.

“As we said before, if we do not say no to the trustees all together, if we do not raise a strong voice, this lawlessness, inequality and injustice will grow like a snowball and steal from all our lives.I wish we did not have to remind this, but unfortunately, from Hakkari to Esunyurt, we are facing the same game again from 2016 to today. Again, an operation was carried out by breaking down doors at dawn. It could have been done in a very different way if an investigation had been carried out against Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Özer in accordance with the law and democracy. Now we all know that this is not the case," Doğan said.

Noting that Esenyurt is the biggest district of Turkey with one and a half million population, Ayşegül Doğan said, “The targeted person is a mayor elected through Urban Consensus. Therefore, it needs to be evaluated from many perspectives. They want to send a message to the Urban Consensus, they want to send a message to Istanbul, and they want to send a message to the democratic opposition that is likely to grow stronger.”

Ayşegül Doğan pointed out that the presumption of innocence was out of circulation and continued: “We have always said it and we say it again, the usurpation of will is destruction and plunder. To ignore the will of the people is to completely destroy the already damaged trust in democracy. We must raise our voices, object and resist all together. We must fight against this. We must use all our democratic rights and force them to act in accordance with democracy and the law.

And, why now? It is being evaluated with the latest developments. Why Esenyurt, why Ahmet Özer, and why the mayor of Esenyurt? Why are these questions being asked? There is a great need for social reconciliation and peace. After 31 March (elections), this has been the most talked about topic and one of the hottest topics on the agenda so far is the need for social peace and reconciliation. Because it is precisely at such a time that the strengthening of the democratic opposition is feared, and with this fear and panic, it is thought that the democratic opposition could be weakened through such political operations and Turkey can win. But this is not how Turkey wins, this is not how Turkey can win.”

Pointing to the remarks made by Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan, Ayşegül Doğan said: “For an unprejudiced evaluation, it is necessary to have learned a lesson from the past. For an unprejudiced evaluation, it is necessary to give up the methods of the past. On the one hand, you will make calls for embrace, on the other hand, you will try to make it look like we have a clenched fist. Look, we do not have a hidden fist here, it is clear. You appoint a trustee to the biggest district of Turkey's biggest province. You accuse the mayor of his Kurdish identity and arrest him. This is unacceptable. This does not concern only the DEM Party, nor only the CHP. Everyone who needs a real embrace, social reconciliation and peace in this country demands that this practice be reversed.

To target a mayor who was elected with the votes of all layers of society is to target the spirit of urban consensus. What is targeted is the model of living and governing together. Please go back and look at the accounts of Esenyurt Municipality and Ahmet Özer, what he has shared, what he has promised, what kind of model he wants to implement. The target is pluralism, inclusiveness, social municipalism, democratic and participatory municipalism. This is precisely what they are disturbed by; local democracy. They don't want us to talk about these topics.

We, as the DEM Party, see this game. We are the political party that knows these conspiracies best. They have been trying to intimidate us with the same evil for years. We call out to those who are trying to compromise and discourage us. Such games, conspiracies, tricks and schemes, unfortunately make Turkey lose. They do not make anyone win. Those who hope for political benefit from this should remember the municipalities that we took back one by one from the trustees despite all the traps, pressures and difficulties we faced.

The President said yesterday that there is no justice where there is lawlessness. What other lawlessness could one ever face? We learn about the appointment of a trustee and the details of the operation from the media.  This republic is not the republic of a certain person, a certain group, a certain mass, a certain sect, a certain ethnicity. It is said that this republic is the republic of the Kurds as well as the Turks. But as the hours pass, we are being made to feel that this republic is the republic of a certain group, mass, sect, denomination and ethnic origin.

Denial, ignoring and assimilation continue with the same security policies. It has always been impossible to open a new path in Turkey. Social peace, embrace, reconciliation and dialogue cannot be achieved in this way. Sincerity is their own discourse. Is this how you show sincerity, is this sincerity, is this authenticity, is this realism? Will you ensure social embrace by appointing trustees and ruling the country with a regime of trustees?"

Answering journalists’ questions about the calls made by Erdoğan and his partner Devlet Bahçeli, leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), Doğan once again pointed to Abdullah Öcalan as the main interlocutor for a peaceful solution to the Kurdish question through dialogue.

“Apart from Erdoğan and Bahçeli's rhetoric, there is nothing we can call a process. Concerns and worries are increasing. We should not be limited to mere calls. I repeat; the key is in the conditions,’ she added.