After Vatan (“Fatherland”) Party Leader Doğu Perinçek said, “My first act as the President will be to have the HDP shut down” last week, the party’s Amed, Batman and Kiziltepe provincial and district branches announced their resignations with a press statement. The resignees announced that they will be supporting the HDP and their presidential candidate Selahattin Demirtaş.

This Thursday, a committee led by former Vatan Party Amed Province Chair Selahattin Gönül visited HDP Amed and said they want to join the HDP. The meeting was closed to the press, but afterwards HDP Amed Co-chair Mehmet Şerif Çamcı and former Vatan Party Province Chair Selahattin Gönül gave statements.

HDP Amed Co-chair Mehmet Şerif Çamcı spoke first and thanked the committee for their courtesy visit to the party. Çamcı said: “We would like to thank them once again for resigning from the Vatan Party and announce their support for the HDP. This approach is a contribution to peace. We believe their support is meaningful at a time when HDP is put under pressure and faces antidemocratic attitudes.”

Former Vatan Party Province Chair Selahattin Gönül spoke after Çamcı and mentioning their resignation last week, said: “We will be supporting the HDP and Selahattin Demirtaş to contribute to peace.”

When asked if they will join the HDP, Gönül said: “In the coming days there can be a mass sign-up of at least 90 people.”