Beylikdüzü Mayor Murat Çalık announces his decision regarding the NEW Party: I will never forget
Imprisoned Beylikdüzü Mayor Murat Çalık, who is among the mayors who have not resigned from the CHP, announced his decision on his social media account.
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Emphasizing that he respects the choices of those who have resigned from the CHP, Çalık stated that he will continue his political life within the CHP.
Murat Çalık, who has been imprisoned since March 2025, said, "I will continue my path where I am today, in the Republican People's Party (CHP)."
The statement made on Çalık's social media account included the following:
"My dear neighbors of Beylikdüzü, my valued fellow travelers, throughout the ongoing trial process, I have focused all my attention on responding to the accusations directed at me and posing my questions to those who have made statements about me in the presence of the court.
However, due to the evaluations made regarding my political stance in recent days, I felt the need to share some matters with the public in an open and sincere manner. Throughout my life, I have believed that it is not positions, titles, or the conditions one is in, but the values and principles I believe in that serve as a guide.
Today, I stand in the same place. In this difficult process where I have been deprived of my freedom for 524 days, I have gone through severe tests not only legally and politically but also in terms of my health. However, despite everything I have experienced, I have never lost my hope, my determination to struggle, and my belief in justice. Because the values a person upholds in the most difficult times actually reveal their true character. Therefore, I will remain the same Mehmet.
I will continue to defend the same values, the same human and moral virtues. On the path I have walked for years, I continue to walk with the values I believe in. For me, the issue is not individuals, but principles; not daily political calculations, but the Republican values entrusted to us by Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The Republican People's Party is not just a political party for me.
My bond with the Republican People's Party is based on a deep-rooted political affiliation coming from my family. This bond is far beyond personal expectations. The Republican People's Party is the bearer of our Republic's founding values, democracy, freedom, equality, justice, and the will of the people. Struggling within the Republican People's Party, which Atatürk saw as one of his two great works, and being a part of this great institution has a special meaning for me.
For this reason, I would like to state clearly that I will continue my path where I am today, in the Republican People's Party. Throughout its history, the Republican People's Party has been a polyphonic, pluralistic, and democratic party of congresses. It has harbored different thoughts, different evaluations, and different views within itself.
I respect the decisions that everyone has made and will make with their own free will. I see this as a natural part of democracy. Because for me, politics is not about holding a position, but about being able to uphold the values you believe in. My dear neighbors, my valued fellow travelers, today the allegations against me are being discussed in the presence of the court and on legal grounds. I have answered all the issues directed at me in the indictment in full; I have made my defense.
I have presented the concrete documents I rely on one by one, and I have directed my questions directly where I deemed necessary. I expect the allegations against me to be evaluated within the framework of the law and with their evidence, and I believe that justice and the truth will eventually find their place.
As I have done until today, I will continue to stand by justice, freedom, democracy, and the fundamental values of our Republic from now on as well. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has stood by me regardless of their political views, who have worried about my health, who have supported my family, and who have not spared their prayers during all these difficulties. I will never forget the solidarity you have shown throughout my life.
I greet you all with respect, love, and hope.
May you be entrusted to God. With my respects. Mehmet Murat Çalık"
My dear neighbors of Beylikdüzü, my valued fellow travelers,
— Mehmet Murat Çalık (@mmuratcalik) August 27, 2026
Throughout the ongoing trial process, I have focused all my attention on responding to the accusations directed at me and posing my questions to those who have made statements about me in the presence of the court. However, due to the evaluations made regarding my political stance in recent days... pic.twitter.com/aIxYrtSdln