Garo Paylan: The voters became reserved during the clashing period
According to unofficial results, Garo Paylan is elected to parliament as HDP Istanbul MP. He answered the questions of Agos’ chief editor Yetvart Danzikyan.
“The moment the peace process was ended, the sides were rearranged”
Assessing HDP’s reaction to the decline in their votes, Garo Paylan said, “Our expectation was higher. In the local elections in 2014, we received 2.900.000 votes. Just in a year, our votes are doubled. However, the moment the peace process was ended, the sides were rearranged and the polarization got intensified. In such cases as this, new supporters get naturally confused. When the statements got harsh, people began to be worried. We see that the voters distanced themselves from us.”
HDP’s votes declined all around Turkey and Paylan assessed HDP’s position in Kurdish region: “People are more tired there. The peace was so close, but then the negotiations ended abruptly. The state used all of its apparatus to increase AKP’s votes. It is said that they cannot talk about peace if there is only HDP. We also say this. Other political parties should be involved in this process, but there must be people who want peace. We hope that AKP MPs in the region will focus on the peace.”
“AKP should use its power for peace again”
Evaluating the future of the peace process, Garo Paylan said, “AKP is able to convince its supporters to almost anything. Two years ago, when they said that they want to stop the tears, their supporters didn’t react. When they ended the process, again, none of their supporters reacted. We want AKP to use its power for peace, for parliament again. We continue to challenge them through democratic politics.”
“Our key phrase is constructive opposition”
Garo Paylan, as an Armenian MP, said that he will also speak for the problems of Armenian community: “Like many other issues, Armenian question is thrown aside. In this term, our key phrase is constructive opposition. We have issues like foundation elections, patriarchal election and problem of status, and I have bills for these issues. We held some talks before the election and we continue to work now that the election is over.”
Here's the Turkish version of the interview:
