Friday, June 17, 2011

Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block gained a victory at general elections

General elections on 12th June, created a picture, full of big problems. This picture shows that, coming days will not be easy for the ruling party, AKP, and other system parties.

The real factor, which increased the votes of AKP was not the support of the people to the AKP policies but dissolving at the rightist parties and taking their votes to the AKP. AKP became the center for the conservative-right. Contrary, AKP suffered a big defeat at the Kurdish region.
CHP (social democratic party), did not inspire confidence to the people as an alternative; “new CHP” and “K?l?cdaroglu wind” had finished before it started. CHP took 26 percent of the votes and gained 135 seats but immediately became a party with internal problems.

By taking almost 50 percent of the votes and gaining 326 seats; AKP seems to be successful at fooling the people but it’s difficult to say that upcoming days will be good for our people. Also, we do not need to be a fortuneteller to say that hard days waiting AKP.

This is because, Turkey became such a country with many problems on economy, foreign policy, Kurdish question, pressure and discrimination over the minorities, women issue, environmental problems, education and health system, unemployment and so on. Current deficit, internal and external debts, increasing at taxes, prices and inflation show that AKP government will steal one piece of people’s bread everyday.
Also, AKP government, which played a democracy game by patching the Coup Constitution with a referendum, could not put rising Kurdish movement and labourers’ struggle off with vague promises.
We, Labour Party, had an approach to consider taking democratic steps for workers and labourers, Kurds, Turks and all peoples in Turkey. Since the beginning, we have been insisted on uniting all powers struggling for labour, peace, democracy and freedom to form an alternative against AKP and other system parties. As a result of this work, we participated the elections with independent candidates under the flag of Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block. The political party of the Kurdish movement in Turkey (BDP) and we (Labour Party) were the main powers of this block. Also there were 16 parties and organisations in this Block.

Ex-president of the Labour Party, Abdullah Levent Tuzel was the independent candidate of the Block from Istanbul, the biggest city of Turkey. There were almost 60 independent candidates especially at the Kurdish region of Turkey and some western cities like Istanbul, Izmir, Ankara (the capital), Mersin and Adana, etc.

And more than 40 cities, we participated elections as the Labour Party (EMEP). And at these cities, members of the block supported EMEP as the party of the Block.

Finally, despite all anti-democratic election laws, 10 percent threshold, arrestings, shootings (2 Kurdish child and a retired teacher killed by police during election campaign period) the real winner of the elections is Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block. Our ex-president Abdullah Levent Tuzel elected as MP from Istanbul with 143 thousand votes. Totally, with 36 MP, this Block showed that it is a public movement. Also, with 11 women MP, Block showed a different approach from other parties. With candidates from all nationalities (Turkish, Kurdish, Syriac) and all sects, this Block became the real opposition force of the struggle for the democratic constitution and Democratic Turkey.

All labour, democracy and progressive forces in Turkey should analyse the results of this election carefully and unite their power in this Block.

Selma Gurkan
President

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