Socialist Party of Malaysia strongly condemns the ban proceedings against the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in Turkey. The threat of banning HDP came after years of repression on the democratic opposition forces in Turkey.

On 17^th March 2021, the top public prosecutor of the high court of appeals has filed a case with the constitutional court to demand the closure of Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), the third largest party in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey which received close to six million votes in 2018 general election. The proceedings to ban HDP came on the same day that the government stripped off HDP parliamentarian Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu’s status as a member of parliament.

After the outrageous impeachment of many Kurdish mayors since 2019 and stripping off a number of HDP parliamentarians from their positions, the Turkish authorities are now moving to ban a democratic party for which millions of people have voted for. This is unlawful, undemocratic and a violation of civil and political rights. It shown that the authoritarian regime of Erdogan wants to clear his main opposition out of the way.

For four years, the former HDP leader Selahattin Demirtaş has been innocently in prison, like so many opposition members, members of parliament, mayors and journalists.

We call on the Turkish authorities to immediately halt the ban proceedings, stop the repression against the HDP and to release all HDP elected representatives from prison.

We stand in solidarity with the HDP in their fight against this repression.

Released by,

Choo Chon Kai, Central Committee Member, Socialist Party of Malaysia / Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM)