ANKARA - Speaking at the Kobanê Political Genocide Trial, Ayla Akat Ata said, “Our demand for autonomy is not just for the Kurds. Turkey is a young republic founded on the Ottoman legacy. Therefore, this demand is neither ethnic nor territorial. But it foresees the transfer of authority.”

 

The Kobanê Political Genocide Trial, in which 108 people, 24 of whom were imprisoned, including the former Co-Chairs of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Figen Yüksekdağ and Selahattin Demirtaş and the former Co-Chair of the Democratic Regions Party (DBP) Sebahat Tuncel, are on trial. The 6th session of the 3rd hearing continues to be seen in the Sincan Prison Campus Hall after the recess.

 

At the end of the recess, Rosa Women's Association Founding Member and Free Women’s Movement (TJA) activist Ayla Akat Ata continued her words from where she left off.

 

‘Our demand for autonomy is not just for the Kurds’

 

Stating that the booklet "Democratic autonomy" prepared by the Democratic Society Congress (DTK) 2 years ago was considered a crime and included in the indictment, Ayla explained why they called it "democratic autonomy" as follows: "Our demand for autonomy is not only for the Kurds. Turkey is a young republic founded on the Ottoman legacy. Therefore, this demand is neither ethnic nor territorial. But it foresees the transfer of authority. Our other demands were constitutional citizenship, strengthening the parliamentary system, secularism and status for the Kurdish people.”

 

Alliances are reminded

 

Reminding that the call for alliance made by HDP Co-Chairs of the period on 6-8 October 2014 was also included in the indictment, Ayla said: “A call was made to develop an alliance again. We encounter examples of these alliances in history as well. There are alliances in the Malazgirt War and the First World War. There are alliance protocols between Kurds and Turks signed in 1921. There is an emphasis on alliance in the words mentioned in the Erzurum and Sivas Congress and the Amasya Protocol. There was no ethnic emphasis.”

 

‘The Tomb of Süleyman Shah is an important alliance’

 

Reminding the process of relocating the Tomb of Süleyman Shah after ISIS attacked Syria, Ayla said: "I think this is an important alliance developed by the Kurdish and Turkish people."

 

‘PKK, 17th revolt’

 

Stating that 13 Kurdish revolts were recorded before the republic and 16 after the republic, Ayla said: “In the words of Süleyman Demirel, the PKK emerges as the 17th revolt. The Kurdish issue has come to this day by developing with the demand for autonomy throughout the Ottoman Empire period."

 

Ayla then talked about the revolts in the history of the republic.

 

The trial continues with Ayla’s defense.