The "Freedom for Peace" rally organised in Mersin with the participation of thousands of people and ended after the speech of Tülay Hatimoğulları, co-chair of the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party). Tulay Hatimogullari started her speech by greeting the masses and said, "Mersin, Hatay, Antakya, Adana, Osmaniye, we are together today. We are together for freedom. We are together to shout for peace." 

 

Pointing to the İmralı talks, Tulay Hatimogullari said, "Today, peoples all over Turkey are turning their eyes to İmralı and the new statement to be made. While sharing with you where and how this issue must evolve, I firstly convey to you the greetings of Mr Abdullah Öcalan. While trustees are appointed to us and detentions and arrest countinue, people are asking whether this process will be crowned with peace. Akdeniz Municipality is one of the rare municipalities of this country. You, dear Kurdish people, had to migrate here in the 90s, when war and conflict were intense, and you made the country you were exiled to your hometown.  From here we say once again; you cannot usurp our will. Akdeniz municipality is ours. It will continue to be like this.

 

Greeting peace mothers, Tulay Hatimogullari said mothers became the symbol of peace. Reminding mother Halise Aksoy, whose son's body was delivered to her in a box by cargo, sentenced 6 years and 3 months in prison, Tulay Hatimogullari  sent her greeting and solidarity to Halise Aksoy. 

 

Tulay Hatimogullari said, "If the Kurdish issue is solved and democracy is established, your bread will grow, the budget allocated to drones, private security policies, bullets, tanks, cannons and soldiers will no longer be allocated there. We will fight together for your bread to grow. Workers' right to strike is being prevented. From here we will shout with the loudest voice: ‘long live the brotherhood of peoples’, ‘long live the unity of workers’." 

 

MURDERED JOURNALISTS 

 

Stressing murdered journalist Nazım Daştan, Cihan Bilgin and Aziz Köylüoğlu Tulay Hatimogullari said, "I respectfully commemorate all murdered journalists and press labourers. In addition, detentions and arrests continue. The detentions and arrests of JINNEWS, Mezopotamya Agency (MA) reporters and many other press labourers that I cannot list here continue. They have widened the circle. Suat Toktaş is in prison after the operation against Halk TV. Once again we say that we must unite against fascism. Mr Öcalan sent an important message especially to the opposition to be the voice and breath of peace in this period." 

 

Commemorating murdered Alevis by HTS attacks Tulay Hatimogullari added, "While talking about the internal peace in Turkey, we should also talk about the internal peace in Syria. In the war that has been going on in Syria for years, our peoples in Rojava have fought the strongest struggle against organisations such as ISIS, SNA and their offspring Al Nusra and Al Qaeda. With the self-government in Rojava, an important democratic model has been achieved." 

 

‘WHAT IS THE SOLUTION PROJECT OF THE RULER?’

 

Tulay Hatimogullari continued her speech as follows: "Mr Öcalan has worked day and night in his 12 centare cell for 26 years for these days. He says, 'I should be provided with the means to work more comfortably and meet with everyone'. We are also behind this demand. In order for the peace process to be discussed more seriously, the isolation on Mr Öcalan must be lifted immediately. If the isolation lifter, Mr Öcalan says in his message, 'I am ready to work for he Kurdish issue to move from the ground of conflict to a peaceful and deocratich ground and to move it to a legal ground.' While peace is being talked about so much and everyone is waiting with great curiosity and excitement for the message from İmralı, what are you doing? What is your solution project? What is the AKP's solution project? We expect them to take concrete and reliable steps. We have said this at every opportunity and we will continue to do so. Mr Öcalan is preparing for a historic call and he is doing this for peace. DEM Party wants peace. Kurdish people want peace, Alevis want peace, the opposition wants peace. O government, what do you want? Answer this question. 

 

From here we send greeting and love to İmralı in the name of peace, freedom, equality and justice. We want peace for Ceylan Onkol who was killed by mortars, for Ugur Kaymaz who was shot with a volley, for Cemile, whose body had to be held in the fridge, for Palestinian children who massacred, for women who kidnapped, abused and sol like slave. We want peace for our chiledren. We promise this from here. We will byild a free country, a democratic and peaceful country together." 

 

Rally ended after Tulay Hatimogullari's speech.