Hagia Sophia is open for prayers, but not to Kurds
The Turkish government has deliberately excluded the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party from political and symbolic events ever since July 2015. This has not destroyed Turkey’s third-largest party, but it has contributed to the rise of Kurdophobia.
The Hagia Sophia transitioned on July 24 to a mosque with Friday prayers and sermons. The prayer was “invitation only.” The discretion to invite was given exclusively to the Turkish Religious Affairs Directorate (the Diyanet). The Diyanet decided to omit the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). “This discrimination is against the constitution,” protested HDP members. Their pleas were ignored.
Indeed, this sort of discrimination “has become the norm since June 7, 2015,” when the peace process collapsed, said HDP parliament member Mahmut Togrul. The HDP has been excluded from almost all national gatherings, even to the post-July 15 National Unity Day events at Yenikapi Square in Istanbul. HDP members have little to no media presence and are not even allowed to participate in TV discussions about the HDP.
Togrul told Al-Monitor, “The [Justice and Development Party (AKP)] and its coalition partner act as if the HDP was not a legal party that was sanctioned by the courts of this country and met all proper requirements officially. We are being treated as an enemy, criminalized, arrested, removed from our democratically elected positions.” Togrul explained how HDP members are interrogated with mind-boggling questions. “Our mayors were asked, ‘You were seen entering the mayor’s office. Why?’ Police officers yell, ‘You are not my parliamentarian’ or ‘Get out of the parliament, go to the mountains and fight us.’ How can we expect the people who have voted for us not to lose their trust in the system?”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was rather upset as the HDP passed the 10% national vote threshold and gained seats in parliament in 2015 and then again in 2018. He labeled the HDP “the party under the control of a terror organization” and criticized those who dared to talk to the HDP.
