HDP vows to play a more active role in politics

Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) has decided to play a more active role in the political arena following the criticisms recently raised against the party for being inert in the post-election period.

Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) has decided to play a more active role in the political arena following the criticisms recently raised against the party for being inert in the post-election period. The party’s Executive Committee gathered to discuss the works it must undertake in the coming period and took decisions to intervene more into the legislation facilities in the parliament and politics in Turkey, including supporting the social movements.

The party assessed its organisational structure and identified the issues it has to work on in order to build the dynamism in politics that its voters ascribed to the party as a mission. The co-chair of the HDP, Figen Yüksekdağ, announced that the HDP deputies and the members of the executive committee will hold a 3-days working camp to prepare the party’s work for the legislation activities in the coming period.

Preparation of a congress to strengthen the organisational structure

In the meantime, the party also prepares a congress and conference to be held in autumn. Provincial branches of the HDP will hold their congresses in the coming weeks in order to strengthen the organisational structure of the party from below. Accordingly, the Executive Committee decided to start preparations for the congress immediately and formed a commission to hold the technical work for it as well as to prepare a framework text for the congress and to discuss it in the coming meeting of the Executive Committee. HDP aims to complete the provincial congresses till October and to hold its general congress and conference in mid-October in order to extend and strengthen its organisational structure, both locally and centrally. The party also decided to extend the congress period to all its members and not to limit it to the participation of the official delegates only. Due that purpose, public meetings will be organised in the local organizations in order to receive the views and criticisms of the grassroots of the party.

Working camp for legislation activities

The HDP, which has become an effective force in the parliament by winning 80 seats in the 7 June elections, will hold a working camp to be participated by all the deputies and the members of the executive committee. The camp will take place on 3-5 August, at the shore of Hazal Lake either in Wan or in Elazığ. The camp will witness a discussion on legislative works that the deputies will undertake in the coming legislative period as well as the involvement of the deputies in the social movements and the ways to pursue a more effective opposition in and outside of the parliament.

The executive committee meeting also decided to provide more active support to the ecological movement in the Black Sea region, where recently popular protests rose against the construction of a highway that will harm the plateaus where peoples in the region move in the summer to feed their animals. HDP was recently criticised especially for being inert in supporting the popular movements in the Black Sea region. Executive committee member Serpil Kemalbay and HDP Istanbul deputy Beyza Üstün, who is at the same time coming from the ecological movement in Turkey, will visit the region in order to support the local people and to carry out works against the construction of the highway and the opening of a new gold mine in Artvin.

Stepping up the struggle for peace

The party also decided to play a more active role in the struggle for peace and to deepen its peace works in two paths. On the one hand, the party will take part with all its organizational structure in the Peace Bloc recently formed in Istanbul in order to take attention to the risk of conflicts that might take place in the coming period both inside and outside the borders of Turkey where the AKP is getting prepared for a war. On the other hand, the party will hold its own specific rallies and actions demanding peace. Accordingly, the HDP will prepare two central rallies on 1 September which is celebrated in the country as peace day. One of the rallies will be organized in a western province while the other one will take place in North Kurdistan. Meanwhile, the party will also prepare itself and its local branches for a probable early election if the coalition talks happen to fail.

HDP co-chair Figen Yüksekdağ informed the public about the works and preparations of the party following the central committee meeting. Yüksekdağ said they will form commissions to work in the parliament around specific issues adding that the role of such commissions will be more influential in the parliament in the new legislation period. Yüksekdağ stated that an additional commission outside the parliament will also be formed in order to put democratic pressure on the parliamentary work and to strengthen the works of the commissions. HDP co-chair stressed that the party will play a more effective and influential role both inside and outside the parliament in order to create a political dynamism capable of giving a new direction to politics in the country.