ANKARA - Women who took part in the delegation from many countries, including Spain, France, and Germany to follow the Kobanê Trial, said that the judge who handled the trial had made his decision from the beginning. The women emphasized that the Kobanê Trial meant "criminalizing the HDP". The women also stated that they would convey their impressions to every segment.

 

On September 13, 2014, ISIS gangs attacked the Kobanê Canton in Northern and Eastern Syria, and in the face of these attacks, actions were made everywhere to support the women's-led resistance against ISIS in the canton. To support the resistance in Kobanê, thousands of people from the cities of the region, especially in Diyarbakır, metropolises, and in Europe gave the message that they were with the people of Kobanê.

 

Six years after the support statements and demonstrations made for Kobanê between October 5-8, 2014, an indictment was prepared last year against 108 people, 17 of whom were women, including Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) former co-chairs, executives and members, as well as many activists. The first hearing of the trial was held on April 26 at the Sincan Prison Campus and the hearing was postponed to May 3.

 

Parliamentarians and activists from many countries followed the Kobanê Trial. Parliamentarians made evaluations to our agency on their impressions of the hearing and how it will be going in the upcoming period.

 

‘The Kobanê Trial is a scandal’

 

Ana Miranda, European Free Alliance (EFA) Group Member of the European Parliament, stated that she always in contact with the HDP and has commonalities with the HDP. Stating that she came to observe the Kobanê Trial and in solidarity with the HDP, Ana stated that President Tayyip Erdoğan was trying to criminalize the HDP and that she saw this once again at the hearing. Ana said: “HDP is a party that defends the common rights of the peoples, democracy, law and freedom. Therefore, it is seen as a danger for Turkey. The Kobanê Trial is a scandal, a pressure against the Kurdish movement. Especially the Kobanê Trial is an attack against freedom of expression. There was no guarantee of the people detained at the trial. Because neither the lawyers nor the MPs had the right to defend themselves at the hearing. Since there was no right to defense at the hearing, the freedom of assurance and defense was lacking. I observed all these shortcomings while I was at the hearing."

 

‘We will tell everyone that HDP has been criminalized’

 

"The Kurdish woman in Kobanê was an example in the world in terms of self-defense and a struggle against the patriarchy," said Ana, and drew attention to the two important points of the Kobanê Trial from the beginning. Ana stated: “The first is to criminalize the HDP and the second is to criminalize the struggle of women in Kobanê. The Kobanê Trial means criminalizing the HDP. Elected women MPs are a model that defends feminism against patriarchy. This struggle is a situation that Turkey is against. We will follow the Kobanê Trial in Europe, we are closely interested, we will have statements on this issue. We will have national or regional press releases in different European parliaments. We will tell everyone that it means criminalizing a party that is a model. The Kobanê Trial is a political montage trying to criminalize the Kurdish movement. The Kurdish movement is a movement that tries to create an equal people and an equal society. It is a movement that tries to be included in the law and justice."

 

‘The judge said there was no place, but the courtroom was empty’

 

French Chantal Morel Vullier stated that came from France to pursue the trial on behalf of the Citizens' Association (AIAK). Chantal said: “Actually, I represent other Kurdish citizens as well, and here I represent those who are affiliated with the feminist, humanist, democratic Kurdish cause and struggle for it. I am a member of the delegation that came to follow the Kobanê Trial. These things we encounter, witness and observations are also very valuable to us. Things we saw in the trial; We witnessed that all lawyers wanted to go inside but could not. The judge said there was no place in the courtroom. However, the courtroom was empty and only the gendarmerie and police were mostly present. Most of the political prisoners made demands, none of their demands were accepted and they were not included in the minutes. Despite the lawyers' protesting and leaving the courtroom, no developments took place and the trial continued. We encountered many similar situations in the courtroom.”

 

‘The Kobanê Trial was a pretext’

 

Chantal, who stated that saw some things clearly during the hearing, drew attention to the fact that the hearing was a political judgment. Chantal used the following words: “Demolishing the HDP and arresting the HDP's members showed that it is a political practice. The Kobanê Trial was a pretext and it was instrumentalized. The situation hidden behind this was the HDP. In other words, it is not only the Kobanê Trial in this case. As an association of individuals, the most basic thing we can do is to be able to explain the situation to the people around us and to tell other people about the situation. We can ensure that citizens have access to real information on this subject. If I tell someone else, this is a situation that may be more effective than a political party declaration, and in this case, the declaration may remain more abstract. If someone tells about a situation she witnessed, that is, with heart, each with her testimony, this would be a more concrete example. This is word of mouth, and it is a very simple step. But it is a situation that can progress quickly and effectively."

 

‘This lawsuit should never have been opened’ 

 

Marta Rosique, the MP of the Republican Left of Catalonia from the Spanish Parliament, stated that she had thoughts that the "Kobanê Trial" was not legal but political before she came here. Marta said: ‘’I can empathize, as we witnessed political causes in Spain, albeit in different ways. Today, we have seen that the Kobanê Trial has not complied with the law. Firstly, I think this case should never be opened. This case was opened to criminalize the Kurdish political movement and illegalize the HDP. Today we witnessed that defense lawyers were not allowed into the courtroom. While there were no lawyers in the courtroom, the judge continued to the case. The Sound and Video Information System (SEGBiS) was not working properly, images were frozen or the sound was not heard well. The translator who came for those who wanted defense in Kurdish was not translating properly. This prevented the right of people to defend themselves in their mother tongue. At the end of the day, I think we are following a political trial, not a court case. The point they want to reach at the end of the trial is certain, there is no objective trial.”

 

‘HDP is the only alternative that will ensure the development of democracy’

 

Stating that she saw the government's policies in the foreign press, Marta said: "As someone from Catalonia, we see that the connection between the Spanish government and the Turkish government is stronger than ever. This poses a great risk to all nations, not just minority nations. For example, the previous day we condemned the Armenian Genocide, but the Spanish government has not even acknowledged the existence of the genocide. Therefore, the strong connection between Turkey and Spain is terrible for democracy, human rights, women's rights, LGBTI+ rights, and oppressed nations. Our solidarity with the HDP does not end here, it will continue forever. HDP is the only alternative that will ensure the development of human rights and democracy in Turkey. I will continue to raise this issue in the Spanish Parliament. In a situation where democracy and human rights are at risk, I will insist that the Spanish government stand by the HDP."

 

‘We will announce everywhere that HDP is a legal party’

 

Oihana Etxebarrieta Legrand, MP of the Basque Country Unite (EH-BİLDU) in the Basque Parliament, emphasized the importance of being with the HDP. Oihana shared her thoughts on the HDP and her impressions of the trial with the following words: “First of all, HDP is our sister party. We also know what difficulties the HDP faced, and we are closely acquainted with the climate of pain and fear stemming from its fascist regime. For all these reasons, we are here today to show that we stand by HDP's political ideas, party program and members. In this case, the judge has made his decision from the beginning. He signaled that he would declare the HDP guilty with every action. The HDP members did not use their right to a fair trial and defense, the defenses of those who defended in Kurdish were not properly translated, lawyers were not allowed into the hall. They have made it clear that they want to complete the trial process quickly and imprison HDP politicians and illegalize the HDP's thoughts and party policy, but they cannot do this. Because HDP is not alone. Many people in the international arena are watching what is happening here and they are worried. We will announce everywhere that HDP is a legal and political party with a legal program. HDP's struggle in Turkey and international solidarity will stop this oppressive regime."

 

‘We are talking about a show where the decision was written before’

 

Eulàlia Reguant, an MP from the Catalan Parliament, pointed out that the HDP is wanted to be suppressed by the government not only with the Kobanê Trial but also with many similar cases. Eulàlia stated: "I also came to watch the Kobanê Trial in solidarity with the HDP. Today, we followed a political lawsuit filed by the authoritarian regime to neutralize the HDP, the third-largest party in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. I will continue to work in solidarity movements with HDP in my country. On the one hand, I will follow the Kobanê Trial. We call it a lawsuit, but we are talking about a show the decision was written before. I will also invite the Catalan Parliament to come up with a solution and solidarity with the HDP while working to make Erdoğan's attitude towards the HDP visible. The authoritarian regime sees that it is losing, and because it realizes that they cannot win with the support of the people on the street, in elections, it wants to illegalize the HDP and exclude it from the political scene."