DEM Party's Hatimoğulları on 'Framework Law' approval and 'New Constitution': Impossible in this atmosphere

DEM Party Co-Chair Hatimoğulları evaluated the law during her appearance on Halk TV. Stating that they expected a 'yes' vote from the entirety of the YENİ Party, Hatimoğulları emphasized that the process was not an electoral alliance.

Hatimoğulları began her evaluation by addressing those who voted "No":

"There have been no funerals for the past 2.5 years. We want this to continue. We want the conflict to end completely. We are still at the very beginning of the process. There are certain established dogmas in Turkish politics. We have not left them behind. When we said 'Yes,' we did not become the same party. Those who voted against it should also consider these things. If they add their own pinch of salt to the soup, we will have worked together for peace. We want to resolve the Kurdish issue in its legal and economic dimensions and move it into a political and legal sphere. We have criticisms regarding the law."

"We are negotiating with this political power because they are the current government. The process is conducted with the state, and the ruling party in Turkey manages the state. If others were in power, we would have negotiated with them."

"In the first resolution process, there were 'wise people' committees. We discussed it with everyone from local shopkeepers to human rights associations. The MHP held public meetings. They tried to explain it to their own base. But the AKP did not do this. Everyone wants peace; no one should have any doubts. We know what this war has cost this country. Could Turkey not have been more active in the region regarding both friendship and peace? This issue remained in its hands through many openings. Think about it in terms of commercial, cultural, and diplomatic relations. 3 trillion dollars were spent on these conflicts. It could have been spent on retirees, workers, and farmers."

"WE EXPECTED A 'YES' VOTE FROM THE ENTIRETY OF THE YENİ PARTY"

"Some of the dissenting votes within the YENİ Party may be due to a lack of trust in the government. Others did not vote because they continue a 100-year-old mentality. We expected a vote from all of them, but I do not want to deepen certain debates here.

The process has just begun. If everything goes well, all social dynamics need to act courageously and break their dogmas. Isn't the joint effort we are showing with the opposition today, while the process continues with the government, a way of breaking a dogma? We have voiced the grievances experienced by the YENİ Party everywhere. The operations that started with Mr. Ekrem İmamoğlu, they all came one after another. We are aware. A 'yes' vote should have been cast even for this grievance. This law does not belong to the AKP. A new era cannot be established with 100-year-old dogmas. We know of Mr. Özgür Özel's support. Both he and 35 deputies cast their votes. I offer our thanks."

"When the law is implemented, it covers everyone. Therefore, it also covers Mr. Demirtaş and Ms. Yüksekdağ!"

"NOT AN ELECTION AGREEMENT"

"Will there be traps in this process? Is it being done for election calculations? It is possible. We do not treat the peace process as a narrow demand of any political party, including ourselves. Anyone who constantly tries to pull the blanket to themselves will sooner or later fail. This law needs to be applied with fairness. It has handicaps. There will be a political commission in Parliament. The other will consist of the state's security bureaucracy. This board will be formed to monitor and verify the process. Everything depends on this board. That is the biggest handicap. As you provide guarantees, trust is built, and as trust is built, guarantees are provided. A master mason must lay the bricks properly."

"Will it be turned into a cocoon during the election? This is a social concern. This is not an election agreement. This is a process of resolving the Kurdish issue through peaceful methods. This is a matter of democracy. It is resolved through the right to equal citizenship and law. It is not a law that imposes confession. Yesterday, the deputies who passionately defended the 'No' vote said, 'They want to lay down their arms and come to Parliament.' What is bad about that? Isn't it good that they lay down their arms?"

"LET US NOT LIVE ANY LONGER WITH THESE CONCERNS"

"Turkey will not be divided; we are pushing for a period where peoples are much more strongly bonded. Let our 86 million citizens from 72 nations live equally. We are all its original citizens. The mother tongue does not divide; let us be at ease. My Turkish brothers, let us not live any longer with these concerns."

WHAT WILL THE DEM PARTY SAY TO A POSSIBLE NEW CONSTITUTION PROPOSAL?

Hatimoğulları also answered the curious question about what her party would say to the Constitutional amendment proposal.

"The current government does not even implement the existing Constitution. All our friends in the Kobane case should be released within the framework of the Constitutional Court's decision. It does not implement the ECHR decision. The imprisonment of Figen Yüksekdağ, Demirtaş, and our friends is illegal. There cannot be a democratic constitution. There cannot be a constitution tailored to an individual. There is a need for a democratic constitution. But it will not fall from the sky. A 'road cleaning' must be done. Like the Gezi prisoners, they should benefit from the Constitutional Court. The appointment of trustees is unconstitutional. It is a law accepted by the People's Alliance that is contrary to the constitution. It eliminates the right to vote and be elected. In this atmosphere, a new constitution is practically impossible."