- Title: Turkey's pro-Kurdish HDP partially boycotts parliament after arrests
- Date: 6th November 2016
- Summary: DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY (NOVEMBER 6, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PRO-KURDISH PEOPLES' DEMOCRATIC PARTY (HDP) MEMBERS ARRIVING VARIOUS OF HDP MEMBERS GATHERED FOR NEWS CONFERENCE HDP MEMBERS LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (Turkish) HDP SPOKESMAN, AYHAN BILGEN, SAYING: "After discussions with our parliamentary group and our central executive board, we have decided to halt our legislative efforts in the light of the most comprehensive and murkiest attack in our democratic history and meet our people once again. We will go to all neighbourhoods, all villages and all cities and listen to our people's complaints and suggestions." MEMBERS OF HDP LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (Turkish) HDP SPOKESMAN, AYHAN BILGEN, SAYING: "We are not in a position to hold technical talks. They (the government) are the ones who breached the legal rules. The people who put their trust in us and voted for us will make the final decision. We are declaring our joint decision of not participating in general assembly and commission meetings. The decision after this phase will be given by the people." MEDIA AT NEWS CONFERENCE HDP MEMBERS LEAVING
- Embargoed: 21st November 2016 09:52
- Keywords: Diyarbakir Turkey HDP parliament lawmakers
- Location: DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY
- City: DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY
- Country: Turkey
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
- Reuters ID: LVA00157B243R
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Turkey's pro-Kurdish opposition announced a partial boycott of parliament on Sunday (November 6), saying it was "halting its legislative efforts" after its leaders and other lawmakers were detained in a move which drew international condemnation.
The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), the second-largest opposition grouping in Turkey's parliament, said it would not fully withdraw, but its deputies would stop participating in sessions of the legislature or meetings of parliamentary commissions.
HDP officials would consult with the party's supporters, many of whom are in the largely Kurdish southeast, and could then consider a full withdrawal from parliament, HDP spokesman Ayhan Bilgen said.
Selahattin Demirtas and Figen Yuksekdag, the HDP's co-leaders, were jailed pending trial as part of a terrorism investigation on Friday. Ten other HDP lawmakers were also detained, although some were later released.
The United States expressed deep concern, while Germany and Denmark summoned Turkish diplomats over the Kurdish detentions. European Parliament President Martin Schulz said the actions "call into question the basis for the sustainable relationship between the EU and Turkey".
President Tayyip Erdogan and the ruling AK Party accuse the HDP of links to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group, which has waged a three-decade insurgency for Kurdish autonomy against the Turkish state and is considered a terrorist organisation by the European Union and United States. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None