HEDEP protests inaction against deputy parliament speaker for swearing at MP during session

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Pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (HEDEP) lawmakers on Oct. 20 protested the Turkish Parliamentary Speaker's Office for its inaction against the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Deputy Parliament Speaker Celal Adan who swore at HEDEP MP Sırrı Sakık. 

The lawmakers knocked on the benches and demanded the session be suspended until a sanction decision was taken against Adan.

Thinking that the microphone was turned off, Adan swore at Sakık after the latter mentioned the massacres that the Kurds have experienced for 100 years in the country. Adan said “pimps” after Sakık spoke.

HEDEP Meral Danış Beştaş reminded that according to Article 94 of the Constitution, the parliament speaker cannot participate in parliamentary debates during his activities inside or outside the Parliament. 

Beştaş asked, "I appeal to the whole parliament. If we do not take a stance on this issue today, will the Deputy Speaker swear at all of us?" 

Beştaş asked Parliamentary Deputy Speaker Bekir Bozdağ, who chaired the session, to recess the session, hold meetings with the speaker’s office and announce a decision against Adan.

"We represent the people, we represent the society. When our language is swearing and insulting, what will we tell” she added. Beştaş said that that Adan should resign and called on the parliamentary speaker to take immediate action.

MHP parliamentary group chair Levent Bülbül stated that the expression containing swearing was not included in the official minutes and claimed that it was ambivalent whether he used this word against the MP. 

Taking the floor after Bülbül, HEDEP group deputy chair Saruhan Oluç stated that a shameful situation had taken place and an attempt was being made to cover it up. He underscored that the reason for the swear to be not recorded in the minutes was that it was not heard in the hall, but that it was recorded in the official videos of the Parliament. 

After Deputy Parliament Speaker Bozdağ decided that he would hold discussions after a while to determine his stance, HEDEP MPs protested Bozdağ by banging on the benches.

The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) also objected to Bozdağ's statement. CHP Group Deputy Chair Ali Mahir Başarır noted that the parliament did not deserve such a statement and reminded that the Parliament immediately took a break and imposed sanctions in a similar situation in the previous term.

Nationalist opposition Good (İYİ) Party attributed the swearing to the “heavy working conditions of the Parliament” yet, called for Parliament to take an immediate action.

Upon Bozdağ's refusal to change his stance, HEDEP MPs continued the protest by banging on their desks. Bozdağ later said he would discuss the issue with the group deputy chairs. When the protests did not end, Bozdağ had to adjourn the session.