Deniz Gezmiş debate in IMM Assembly: MHP says 'He cannot be commemorated', AKP attacks CHP

The first session of the IMM Assembly for May was held at the municipal building in Saraçhane, chaired by the Assembly's 1st Deputy Speaker, Nuri Aslan of the CHP.

Speaking during the non-agenda portion of the meeting, Aslan touched upon commemorations and events in May and commemorated Deniz Gezmiş, Hüseyin İnan, and Yusuf Aslan, who were executed in 1972.

Describing Gezmiş and his friends as, "young people who had beautiful dreams, hopes, and wishes for Turkey," Aslan said, "Do you know what their greatest wish was? It was a fully independent Turkey. It was the welfare and happiness of the people. Unfortunately, they too became victims of polarization, division, and those who tried to make the nation enemies of each other during the dark winter days of this country. They were sent to the gallows at a very young age because of their views, and they never gave up on what they knew to be right on that gallows. That is why their ideas are still alive today. The saplings have blossomed, taken root, and become trees. I commemorate Deniz Gezmiş, Yusuf Aslan, and Hüseyin İnan, who gave their lives for Turkey's independence, with mercy. Long live a fully independent Turkey."

REACTION FROM AKP: CHP NEEDS TO ENGAGE IN SELF-CRITICISM

Taking the floor after the speech, AKP Group Spokesperson Faruk Gökkuş said that Deputy Speaker Aslan should manage the assembly with impartiality, away from ideology, and that his tone did not suit his position.

Criticizing Aslan's words regarding Deniz Gezmiş and his friends, Gökkuş said, "The ideals and methods of Deniz Gezmiş and his friends are your ideological preference, that is indisputable. 'A fully independent Turkey,' fair enough, but the methods, paths, and actions applied by Deniz Gezmiş and his friends cannot be accepted. Regarding this, your party must first reconcile with its own past on this point. Who did not attend the parliament (during the execution vote in the TBMM), who voted 'yes' in the parliament; the CHP needs to engage in self-criticism regarding this."

MHP: WE DO NOT FIND IT APPROPRIATE TO COMMEMORATE HIM

MHP Group Deputy Chairman Orkun Ayhan also took the floor and expressed that he did not find it appropriate for Deniz Gezmiş and his friends to be commemorated in the assembly.

Stating that he wanted to address Deniz Gezmiş's actions, Ayhan said:

"He robbed İş Bank with the threat of a weapon. He was involved in many robberies and extortion incidents in Istanbul. He hijacked a car belonging to an ODTÜ employee at gunpoint. He caused the injury of a non-commissioned officer's wife whose home was forcibly entered. He kidnapped a non-commissioned officer at gunpoint. He fired shots at the Turkish police. He is a person who engaged in armed conflict with our security forces and the Turkish military in Şarkışla and Gemerek."

Following Ayhan's words, CHP assembly members protested by banging on the tables and applauding, while Deputy Speaker Aslan warned the members.

Continuing his speech where he left off, Ayhan stated that they did not find it appropriate for someone who rebelled against the state and the constitutional order through armed actions to be commemorated here. At this moment, Ayhan's microphone was turned off by officials.

Ayhan, whose microphone was turned back on by Deputy Speaker Aslan, said, "We characterize the actions taken by this person as terrorism and the organization he founded as a terrorist organization. We do not find it appropriate to commemorate this citizen who was against the constitutional order."

Finally, CHP Group Spokesperson Gencay Özcan took the floor and said that they did not want the assembly to be unnecessarily tense and that they wanted to produce services for Istanbul.

Stating that they wanted the opposition to be more thoughtful, Özcan said, "No matter what they say, we will continue to commemorate the 3 saplings here and say 'fully independent Turkey'."