The DEM Party Peoples and Beliefs Commission co-spokespersons Yüksel Mutlu and Mahfuz Güleryüz made a written statement on the anniversary of the 6-7 September Pogrom against non-Turkish and non-Muslim communities.

“The 6-7 September Pogrom against Greek, Armenian, Assyrian and Jewish citizens living in our geography 69 years ago, symbolises not only physical attacks against these peoples but also a state-sponsored process of dispossession and appropriation of capital,’ the statement on Friday said.

“Dozens of people were killed in the pogrom, hundreds of women were sexually assaulted, and thousands of citizens had to flee the country due to oppression and threats to their safety,” DEM Party stated: “In the 69 years that have passed, there has been no real confrontation with the 6-7 September Pogrom, not even an official condemnation by the state. Confronting this history is not only about remembering the past, but also necessary for the establishment of peace and equal citizenship in the future. The perpetrators of these shameful events must be exposed and the material and moral losses of the victims must be compensated. As the DEM Party, we will continue to defend the principle of equal citizenship together with the ancient peoples of this geography and continue this struggle stubbornly.”