As the local elections approach, behind-the-scenes talks regarding alliances have gained momentum.
According to a report by Selda Güneysu from Cumhuriyet; it is alleged that the DEM Party made three demands from the AKP in exchange for not fielding a candidate in Istanbul, but that the AKP "rejected" all three of these requests.
ALLEGED 'ISOLATION' DEMAND FOR ÖCALAN
It is claimed that the DEM Party made demands to the AKP that "if the Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality is won, the government should not appoint a trustee to the Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality, that certain prisoners in poor health currently in prison should be released, and that the isolation imposed on PKK terrorist organization leader Abdullah Öcalan should be lifted."
BAŞAK DEMİRTAŞ'S CANDIDACY PUT FORWARD
However, it is suggested that the AKP responded to these three demands from the DEM by stating that "trustees are not appointed to municipalities if the Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality and other mayoral candidates have clean records, are not affiliated with terrorist organizations, and do not engage in cooperation; that given the progress Turkey has made in the fight against terrorism, the isolation of leader Öcalan cannot be lifted; and that it is not possible to release certain prisoners in poor health, although if their condition is confirmed by a medical report, their sentences could be converted to house arrest as a matter of procedure."
It is being discussed that after the DEM Party's demands were not accepted by the AKP, the party recently "put forward the candidacy of Başak Demirtaş, the wife of former HDP Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş, as an Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality mayoral candidate against the AKP."
News Source: 12punto
