Demirtaş, Mızraklı Voice Full Support for Peace Process
Selahattin Demirtaş, the jailed former co-chair of the HDP, and Selçuk Mızraklı, former mayor of Diyarbakır, have issued a joint statement backing the framework law before parliament.
RastinewsSelahattin Demirtaş, the jailed former co-chair of the pro-Kurdish HDP, and Selçuk Mızraklı, former mayor of Diyarbakır, issued a joint statement on the framework law now before parliament.
Demirtaş and Mızraklı called the process "a historic effort for peace" and urged lawmakers to support the bill. The statement said the process must continue through democratic reforms, and thanked the political figures who have contributed to it, chief among them President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli and Abdullah Öcalan.
"This is not a process of division, separation or cheap bargaining"
Addressing doubts and criticism directed at the process, Demirtaş and Mızraklı said: "This is not a process of division, a process of separation, or a process of cheap bargaining."
The statement said no one should look for "hidden agendas and dirty schemes" behind the process. "They can dig into this as much as they want," it said. "Underneath, they will find nothing but a thousand years of brotherhood, the desire to hold each other close, and the feeling of being Turkey together — Kurds and Turks alike."
"Must lay the groundwork for new reforms"
Demirtaş and Mızraklı said the steps taken under the framework law should mark the beginning of broader democratic arrangements, and called for the process to continue with "strong and deep-rooted reforms in democracy, justice, equality and freedom."
The statement noted that 40 years of conflict have left deep wounds in society, and stressed that the process should not be turned into an image of "victory" or "defeat."
Appeal to lawmakers: "Let every vote strengthen peace"
Demirtaş and Mızraklı also addressed lawmakers in the General Assembly directly, asking that the votes they cast "strengthen peace, unity and brotherhood."
Special thanks for Erdoğan, Bahçeli and Öcalan
The statement thanked President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli for the political will behind launching and carrying out the process, while Abdullah Öcalan was described as someone who "has made a great effort for peace" and thanked specifically.
Numan Kurtulmuş, Özgür Özel, Mahmut Arıkan, Ali Babacan, Ahmet Davutoğlu, Erkan Baş, Seyit Aslan, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and Zekeriya Yapıcıoğlu were also among the political figures thanked.
Notable thanks for Dervişoğlu and Erbakan
One notable part of the message was reserved for İYİ Party leader Müsavat Dervişoğlu and New Welfare Party leader Fatih Erbakan, both known for their critical stance toward the process.
Demirtaş and Mızraklı thanked the two leaders in these terms:
"We thank Mr. Müsavat Dervişoğlu and Mr. Fatih Erbakan, who, if only indirectly, contributed to the process through their negative criticism."
The message also thanked the DEM Party leadership and the İmralı delegation, and remembered the late Sırrı Süreyya Önder "with mercy and gratitude."
The statement closed: "May God bless everyone who has contributed to peace, everyone who has carried even a drop of water to this fire. May the law that emerges bring good fortune."
Selahattin Demirtaş / Selçuk Mızraklı
Aug. 9, 2026