The Association of Lawyers for Freedom (ÖHD) announced its report on the appointment of trustees to Mêrdin (Mardin) Metropolitan, Êlih (Batman) and Xelfetî (Halfeti) municipalities on 4 November. ÖHD Co-Chair Ekin Yeter and many people attended the statement made at the ÖHD building in Amed (Diyarbakır).

 

The 130-page report, which was read by Muhittin Muğuç, a member of the ÖHD Headquarters Executive, also included the rights violations committed by the police against the protests between 4-13 November 2024.

 

Lawyer Muhittin Muğuç shared the balance sheet of the damages left by the trustees appointed for 3 terms.Muğuç reminded about the debts left by the trustees appointed for 3 terms, the actions they carried out, bans, and the pressure on Kurdish language and culture. Muğuç stated that 147 municipalities belonging to the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), Democratic Regions Party (DBP) and DEM Party have been appointed trustees so far, and that most DBP, HDP and DEM Party executives have been detained and arrested after these trustee appointments.

 

Muğuç stated that 95 trustees were appointed to DBP municipalities, 48 to HDP municipalities, 5 to DEM Party municipalities, 2 to AKP municipalities, 1 each to CHP and MHP municipalities. After the 2024 local elections, trustees were appointed to 5 municipalities, including 1 metropolitan municipality, and Colemêrg (Hakkari) Co-mayor Mehmet Sıddık Akış and Esenyurt mayor Ahmet Özer were arrested. Muğuç pointed out that the Ministry of Interior appointed trustees Êlih (Batman) and Mêrdîn (Mardin) for the 3rd time and to Xelfetî (Halfeti) for the 2nd time, and noted that a total of 105 councillors were dismissed together with the trustees.   

 

RIGHT TO VOTE VIOLATED

 

Muğuç stated that with the trustees appointed to Mêrdîn, Êlih and Xelfetî municipalities, right to vote of 880 thousand 60 voters in total were violated and the duties of 105 councillors were terminated, and that the total debt of the 3 municipalities from the previous period is around 8 billion 400 million TL. Reminding that a 10-day protest ban was imposed after the trustee appointments, Muğuç stated that the meetings and demonstrations were intervened in many places and that pepper spray, rubber bullets, water cannons, reverse handcuffs, nationalist songs, denial of food and water and physical force were used in these interventions.

 

265 DETAINEE

 

Muğuç stated that 215 people were detained in Êlih, 37 of them were arrested, 115 people were released on judicial control conditions (house arrest for 5 people); 16 people were detained in Xelfetî, 10 people including 1 child were arrested, 6 people were released on judicial control conditions. Muğuç stated that 10 of 30 people detained in Mêrdîn were arrested adn 13 people were released with judicial control. Muğuç also said 57 of 261 people were arrested in total. 

 

Muğuç also stated that Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya initiated an investigation into 217 accounts allegedly sharing criminal offences on virtual media accounts.

 

PRACTICE HAS BECOME CONTINUOUS WITH CONCEPT OF 'TERROR'

 

Stating that the elimination of the elected body is the elimination of the possibility of supercision of the trustee, Muğuç said: "As a result of the appointment of trustees to the municipalities and the termination of the municipal councils, whic are 'the decision-making body of the municipality', the minimum democratic basis for the participation of the people/citizens in governance has been eliminated. The principle that municipalities should be governed by an elected municipal administration and municipal council' has been suspended. The right to elect and be elected, which is one of the indispensable elements of a democratic society, has been suspended with the trusteeship practice. In provinces where Kurds mostly live, the practice of trusteeship has become a generalised, abstract and permanent practice with the concept of 'terrorism'. It gives a vested right to municipality co-mayors and their voters, who are declared by the Supreme Electoral Council that there is no obstacle to their candidature, who are rendered electable in the eyes of the voters, and who are subsequently elected by popular vote. The dismissal of the co-mayors without concrete grounds is a violation of guaranteed rights."

 

Finally, Muğuç listed the suggestions and actions to be taken against the trustees.