HDP deputy's home attacked by armed men claiming to be police

Duvar English

The Ankara home of pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) deputy co-chair Tülay Hatimoğulları was attacked by two armed men claiming to be police officers. 

Two men in civilian clothing arrived at Hatimoğulları's home on the night of Sept. 24, the deputy said, and told her that they were civilian police officers. 

The two men insisted Hatimoğulları open her door, she said, adding that she insistently refused and told them that she had immunity as a member of parliament. 

The deputy soon called party members and police to inform them of the attack, and the men eventually left her residence, she said, noting that she immediately filed a criminal complaint about the incident with the police. 

Hatimoğulları's attorneys were made to apply to multiple prosecutors to present a petition about the attack on Sept. 27, she said, noting that even the prosecutor on call refused to accept the document after learning about the content. 

"Of course we can guess the intent behind forcing an MP's door as such, but we are waiting to hear from official entities about the attack," the deputy said. 

Noting that human rights violations have become a common practice in Turkey, the deputy noted that the attack on her home was not an isolated event. 

"Kidnappings by people with police IDs, tortures and rendering people intelligence agents have been issues we hear often recently," Hatimoğulları said. 

Multiple members of the HDP have been battered, attacked and kidnapped in 2021, deputy co-chair Ümit Dede said in a press conference on Sept. 28.

HDP Central Executive Board (MYK) member Serhat Aktemur was kidnapped in Diyarbakır and battered, another member Celalettin Yalçın was kidnapped and battered in Istanbul, and Sincan district co-chair Fatma Kılıçarslan was kidnapped in Ankara, Dede said. 

Five days have elapsed since the attack on MP Hatimoğulları, Dede said, noting that the inaction on the part of the prosecution hints at government involvement in the attack.

"The people who kidnapped Yalçın told him that nobody could find them or investigate them," Dede said. "There's clearly a parallel structure here that law enforcement can't touch."

Çankaya Police confirmed that they had not assigned officers to go to Hatimoğulları's home and that the incident was suspicious, party representatives confirmed. 

The HDP comes from a tradition of surviving attacks on the Kurdish community, Hatimoğulları said, adding that they would not back down from seeking legal solutions for the attack.

Such an attack on an MP shows that all members of Turkey's population are under threat of human rights violations, the HDP added, urging all democratic stakeholders to support their efforts.