Ekrem İmamoğlu's 'Kurdish' statement: 'I accept it as a responsibility...'

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu made statements regarding the local elections on March 31, 2024.

Speaking to Murat Sabuncu from T24, he gave the following response to the question, "You are also being criticized by the government over the relationship you are trying to build with Kurdish voters. How does this make you feel?"

"I am saddened, of course. Because they want people to be part of a process aimed at polarization with a wrong sentiment and a wrong definition of nationalism. This is being achieved, and it is a very bad, very dangerous thing. It is perhaps one of the most dangerous points in Turkey right now."

"I AM AN ADMIRER OF MY TURKISHNESS, I AM VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT MY OWN LANGUAGE"

"I am an admirer of my own essence, my Turkishness, meaning I am very passionate about my own language. I am passionate about my history," said İmamoğlu, adding, "When I look at what kind of ethnic origin I am a part of, all the way to Central Asia, I look with admiration. I look at its language the same way, and I can say that I am in love with its words, its songs, and its way of life. In other words, I am aware that I am a member of a process that I have read about and followed with admiration throughout the entire historical flow, from Alparslan to Fatih Sultan Mehmet and Suleiman the Magnificent."

"I ADMIRE THE FEELINGS OF EVERY PERSON LIVING IN THESE LANDS"

İmamoğlu continued as follows;

"But I also admire the feelings of every person living in these lands just as much. In other words, I also admire the language, attitude, situation, stance, and culture of people from every ethnic origin. Turks have not grown by segregating throughout history; they have grown by integrating. The same happened during the Seljuk period, and the same happened during the Ottoman period. The same happened when the Republic of Turkey was founded. In other words, when the Republic of Turkey was founded, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk actually made such a beginning in its essence. He defined everyone who is a citizen of the Republic of Turkey as Turkish. In this sense, I express the issue very clearly. We currently have 86 million people, and these 86 million people are a part of this nation. Not one person is a dram less or a dram more. In this sense, I am, of course, against any attitude or stance that is accusatory toward its people, or even goes so far as to call them traitors or terrorists. Moreover, we are even subjected to this from time to time. So, this is not something that only applies to a Kurdish citizen. We are facing a mentality that declares anyone who does not vote for it a terrorist. But this nation will respond to this. This nation has passed very serious tests together. The Battle of Gallipoli, the War of Independence, the struggle for liberation, the struggle for the founding of the state. In other words, there are great struggles fought together, such as the Erzurum Congress, the Sivas Congress, and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey convened in 1920. I think the nation will give a serious answer to those who see this division and polarization as a political strategy for themselves."

“I ACCEPT LEARNING ENOUGH KURDISH TO ASK HOW SOMEONE IS DOING AS A RESPONSIBILITY”

When asked whether he has learned Kurdish, İmamoğlu replied, "I wouldn't say I am learning, I am trying to keep a few words in my mind. But of course, I have colleagues who know Kurdish. Especially on my field trips, they are always with me. Sometimes we encounter Kurdish citizens who do not know any Turkish at all. This happens more often, especially with women or with Kurdish citizens who are quite elderly. Honestly, I want to understand their feelings too. And I really asked myself, why don't I know any Kurdish? At least enough to say hello, enough to ask how someone is doing, to ask about their well-being. Honestly, I accept learning this as a responsibility for myself."