Speaking at the Symposium "Democratic Alliance for Justice and Peace" organised by the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in Istanbul, party co-chair Sezai Temelli commented on the forthcoming mayoral elections in Istanbul on 23 June.

Temelli started by commenting on the ongoing hunger strike against the isolation of Abdullah Öcalan and said: "There can be no agreement with fascism. We will win again on June 23rd. For us, this election is about the fight for democracy."

Temelli stressed the importance of a democracy alliance going beyond the elections. "We invite everyone into politics," said HDP Co-Chair, appealing to the opposition, "Let's do politics together. Let us fight together by opposing isolation and giving our arm to the mothers with white headscarves. We fight for a dignified peace. Before us are the elections. As was the case with any election, it is wondered what the Kurds will do. One can only guess this with at a look back over the past forty years. Just as we fought in the local elections on March 31, we will also fight on June 23. We will do the necessary for freedom and democracy to win. Everyone is asking what the HDP will do. They should rather ask themselves what they will do against isolation and for democracy. "