4 HDP mayors detained in Mardin, Şanlıurfa
HDP mayors from Savur, Derik and Mazıdağı districts of Mardin and Suruç district of Şanlıurfa have been detained as part of ongoing terrorism investigations, provincial prosecutors said. In addition to detentions and arrests, Turkey’s Interior Ministry often appoints trustees to replace elected mayors from the HDP in the country’s southeast.
Duvar English
Turkish police on Nov. 15 detained at least ten people, including four mayors of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), as part of ongoing terrorism investigations.
Among the detained are Nalan Özaydın, the mayor of the Mazıdağı district in the southeastern province of Mardin; Gülistan Öncü, the mayor of the Savur district in Mardin; Mülkiye Esmez, the mayor of the Derik district in Mardin; and Hatice Çevik, the mayor of the Suruç district in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa.
Detentions and arrests of HDP members have been a common practice in Turkey since 2016, with the party’s former co-chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ being kept in jail for nearly 3 years.
In addition to detentions and arrests, Turkey’s Interior Ministry often appoints trustees to replace elected mayors from the HDP in the country’s southeast, again citing “terror related charges,” referring to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).