24 September 2022 17:20
The Labour and Freedom Alliance, formed by the Peoples' Democratic Party, the Labour Party, the Workers' Party of Turkey, the Social Freedom Party, the Federation of Socialist Assemblies and the Labourist Movement Party, announced its foundation.
Labour and Freedom Alliance set out with a public meeting in Istanbul. The alliance, which set out with the slogan "We will change together", declared that it has started a march of struggle to stop the destruction caused by the AKP-MHP alliance in every field and to realise a democratic change.
The Alliance of Labour and Freedom, formed by the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), Labour Party (EMEP), Workers' Party of Turkey (TİP), Social Freedom Party (TÖP), Federation of Socialist Assemblies (SMF) and Labour Movement Party (EHP), announced its establishment with a public meeting held at the Haliç Congress Centre in Istanbul. Before the public meeting that started at 15.30, lollipops with the words "Democracy", "Freedom", "Equality", "Women", "Labour", "Peace", "Nature", "Youth", (LGBTI) were left on the seats. "We will change together" and "Labour and Freedom Alliance" banners in Kurdish and Turkish were hung in the hall.
ETF workers, who have been resisting for their rights for months, entered the hall where the announcement was to be made with the slogans "We will win, unite unite unite", "There is no salvation, either all together or none of us". Those in the hall responded with the slogan "Victory will be for the resisting labourer". Speaking to our newspaper, ETF workers said, "It is important that workers, the oppressed, people from different segments, different colours meet together, in an alliance, it has been the same administration for 20 years, now we need another alternative to this cruelty and tyranny. This alliance has become hope for us too." Workers who were dismissed from their jobs in Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality also attended the meeting. The workers were greeted with slogans 'Resisting workers are not alone'.
Relatives of prisoners and members of the Mothers of Peace Initiative, who have been continuing their vigil for justice in Istanbul for months despite police attacks, attended the event in a cortege wearing aprons with the slogan "Freedom for sick prisoners" on them. Relatives of the detainees and mothers who came from the congress garden entered the hall with the slogans "Bijî berxwedana zindanan", "Jin, jiyan, azadî" and chants. The mothers wearing aprons with the words "Freedom for sick prisoners" were greeted with a standing ovation. The public meeting, which filled the hall to capacity, started with a cinevision show. The cinevision showing Saturday Mothers, women, workers and young people struggling for the right to housing was greeted with great enthusiasm. After the declaration text of the Labour and Freedom Alliance was announced, the heads of the parties and institutions in the alliance made speeches.
Labour Party Chairman Ercüment Akdeniz greeted the resistance in Iran in Farsi during his speech. Taking the floor with Mahsa Amini's photograph in his hand, Akdeniz said in Farsi: "We salute the freedom struggle of women and people in Iran. Long live international solidarity", which was responded with slogans of Jin Jiyan Azadi.
Labour and Freedom Alliance announced its declaration. The following statements were included in the declaration:
"It is the urgent task of the coming period to stop the destruction created by the People's Alliance in many areas from economy to politics, to end the One Man Rule, to improve the working and living conditions of the people, to ensure a change and transformation on the basis of democratic rights and freedoms. In order for this change and transformation to take place, it is of great importance that the forces in favour of labour, peace and democracy strengthen and resolutely continue their common and united struggle. This unity and struggle must also be a decisive and effective force of the new era. This is also the expectation and demand of the people.
The joint struggle to be waged and the strong and determined attitude to be adopted will be a march that will ensure that the urgent economic demands of the people are achieved and steps are taken towards democratisation. The elections, which are one of the stopping points of this march, have a critical meaning for Turkey. During the election process, it is a non-negligible responsibility to take all measures for election security by raising the struggle for labour and democracy, motivating the people to come out of the elections with gains on this basis, and taking all measures for election security, without attaching the future hopes of the people to the ballot box alone, but without ignoring the importance of the ballot box. The alliance we aim for the realisation of economic and political urgent tasks in this extraordinary period we are going through is the alliance of all the exploited and oppressed masses of the people. It is the solidarity and alliance of workers, labourers, the poor, women, youth, nature and human rights defenders. It is a common, strong and decisive ground of struggle.
The programmes and actions of this government are based on a political understanding and practices that prioritise the interests of imperialism, the capital class and its own crony companies and holdings. This unfair and irregular tender system, which also favours cronies, requires a legal re-examination. The economic and social deprivation caused by the policies of exploitation and oppression on workers and labourers, poor farmers, peasants, tradesmen and oppressed segments of the population has become the first concern of society. Taking concrete steps to solve the problems of cost of living, low wages, unemployment, poverty, subsistence, housing, etc. and improving the working and living conditions of workers, labourers, oppressed masses of people is the first issue for everyone today. Based on this fact, it is imperative to pursue policies that will make domestic and foreign capital pay the heavy bill of the economic crisis and the multifaceted social destruction, and put an end to the precariousness and futurelessness experienced by labourers.
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The one-man rule established under the name of the Presidential Government System has rendered democratic rights and freedoms unusable, institutionalised arbitrariness, tyranny, lawlessness and injustice, deepened the exploitation, oppression and insolvency experienced by this country and its peoples, and made fascist practices a part of daily politics.
Therefore, one of our primary goals is to change all institutions, mechanisms and dependency relations that sustain and nourish the one-man system. There is an urgent need to abolish the electoral threshold, to guarantee the widest use of democratic rights and political freedoms, and to establish a democratic, impartial and independent judicial system. Our goal is to build a democracy based on the true sovereignty of the people on the basis of democratic, libertarian and egalitarian principles.
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One of the most fundamental problems Turkey needs to solve is the Kurdish problem. For a democratic solution and peace, a constructive policy that takes into account the approaches and concerns of all social segments in the country is what is needed. In order to solve the Kurdish question, which is directly linked and intertwined with democratisation, it is necessary to take steps for a democratic and peaceful solution instead of the politics of denial and suppression. It is obvious that instead of war policies, weapons and conflict methods, dialogue and negotiation options have historically imposed themselves and are current. It is of great importance to establish and strengthen the ground for dialogue and solution; to pave the way for the future for the whole society through democratic negotiation methods; within this framework, it is of great importance to make the necessary arrangements for the recognition of all universal identity rights, especially the right to mother tongue.
It is imperative to provide all kinds of guarantees for women and LGBTI+ persons to be equal and free in all areas of social life. A comprehensive fight against systematic male violence against women and femicides, which stem from male-dominated mentality and practices, is a must. Reinstatement and implementation of the Istanbul Convention and removal of all political, administrative, economic and cultural obstacles to gender equality are the first urgent steps. With an approach that respects the life choices of young people, all obstacles in economic, social and political fields, especially in education and culture, must be removed so that they can express themselves freely and live freely. Education at all levels must be free, scientific and democratic. The economic support of young people and their greater participation in governance in all areas will lead to creative and progressive ideas becoming more prominent in society. Children are subjects of society with their own rights. We must recognise this and fight against all discrimination they are exposed to. There are more than 10 million disabled people in our country. Disability cannot be handled with a medical approach that is reduced only to the body. It is of vital importance to raise awareness in society in every sense and to make all kinds of arrangements for the disabled to benefit from public services as equal citizens.
Capitalism cuts down the tree whose shade it cannot sell. The government, which ensures the deepening of neoliberal policies in the country, is looting all natural assets for capital. Declaring a state of emergency against the climate crisis, all projects that lead to the destruction of nature and the environment for the sake of profit and rent, destroy forests, agricultural areas, rivers and disrupt the ecological balance, and are the focus of crimes against nature must be stopped. A nature protection-oriented approach in all policies, especially in energy, transport, urbanisation and agriculture, is both urgent and imperative. The right of every living thing to live in a healthy ecosystem must be protected by effective laws.
The plunder of historical and cultural assets must be stopped.
We call on all institutions, organisations, parties and individual citizens who care about the bright and democratic future of Turkey. Let's take responsibility together. Let us rebuild the country, which was turned into a fire in the second century of the Republic, in a free and democratic way with common demands and an understanding of struggle together. The peoples of Turkey are not condemned to discrimination, hate speech, polarisation and a dominant politics stuck between the People's Alliance and the National Alliance. We can establish a social order dominated by the people on the basis of labour, peace, freedom and democracy values. Achieving this is possible with the transformative power of the oppressed and exploited masses of the people. We invite everyone to a common and united struggle in line with this understanding and call! We will succeed together... " (EVRENSEL DAILY)
Aydin Çubukçu
Yücel Özdemir
M. Sinan Birdal