The HDP garnered good election results in Turkey's southeast. But the enthusiasm of the party's supporters is limited: They worry the ruling AKP could impose a government administrator on their communities once again.
Image: DW/F. Bozarslan
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"We are very pleased that we won the local elections. Now the will of the people must finally be accepted. Only our own city administration can guide our destiny," a young woman told DW.
Two older ladies with headscarves joined the conversation. "Why should a forced administration come in now?" they asked. "What do they want here? We will not accept that. May God protect the winners of the elections."
But on the streets of Diyarbakir, the second-largest city in the southeastern Turkish region of Anatolia, people often ask what good a democratically legitimated mayor is, if the AKP government's imposed administrators are sent from Ankara anyway?
Pro-Kurdish HCP representative Feleknas Uca: Our victory is the result of Erdogan's actionsImage: DW/F. Bozarslan
In last weekend's local elections, Diyarbakir clearly went to the pro-Kurdish HDP, with almost 63 percent. HDP representative Feleknas Uca says the numbers are historic.
"The result is the people's response to annihilation, denial and heteronomy [by the Erdogan government, the Eds.]," Uca told DW.
Although the HDP lost some communities in the west of the country, it won the highly contested metropolitan regions of Diyarbakir, Van and Mardin. It was able to take back a total of 48 communities from the AKP.
But the hope for genuine self-determination is not particularly great in the Kurdish cities. In 2016, the Turkish government dismissed the mayor of Diyarbarkir, Gultan Kisanak, sentenced her to 14 years imprisonment and sent an AKP administrator to the city; in 96 other Kurdish cities, mayors and municipal councils were replaced by administrators with AKP party members as well.
The Turkish government accuses the HDP mayors of cooperating with the Kurdish terrorist organization PKK; 40 mayors are still in custody today. Another decisive factor was that PKK militias occupied several cities in the summer of 2015 and declared them autonomous zones ― forcing the Turkish government to act.
"If support for terrorists continues, we will send administrators again," he repeatedly threatened during election campaign rallies. Many HDP politicians complained during the campaign that the HDP and other opposition parties were also given very little radio and television broadcasting time.
"Our supporters are threatened," complained HDP board member Sezai Temelli in the run-up to the local elections. "Police officers film the people who come to our rallies, register their names. We are exposed to pressure, violence and interference."
Whether it's the democratically-elected HDP mayor or an imposed administrator from Ankara, the underground capital of the Kurds needs an effective city administration. Few other Turkish metropolises are as badly affected by the economic crisis as Diyarbakir. And hardly any other Turkish city has to deal with more refugees who have fled to Turkey via the nearby border with Syria.
Who is Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan?
From Islamist youth activist to Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has made a career out of politics. But his path has been marked by controversy. DW takes a look at his rise to power.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/E. Morenatti
The rise of Turkey's Erdogan
In Turkey and abroad, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has a polarizing effect. He has been described as a neo-Ottoman "sultan" as well as an authoritarian leader. From his early beginnings campaigning for Islamist causes to leading NATO's second largest military as the president of Turkey, DW explores the rise of the Turkish leader.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/E. Morenatti
Jailed mayor of Istanbul
After years of moving up the ranks of the Islamist-rooted Welfare Party, Erdogan was elected mayor of Istanbul in 1994. But four years later, the party was ruled unconstitutional on the grounds it threatened Turkey's secularist nature, and was disbanded. He was later jailed for four months for a controversial public reading of a poem, and consequently lost his mayorship over the conviction.
Erdogan co-founded the Justice and Development Party (AKP), which won a majority of seats in 2002. He was made prime minister in 2003. During his first years in office, Erdogan worked on providing social services, improving the economy and implementing democratic reforms. But some have argued that his premiership was also marked by a religious shift in the political sphere.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/B. Ozbilici
Islamist causes
While Turkey's constitution guarantees the country's secular nature, observers believe Erdogan has managed to purge the "old secularist guard." The Turkish leader has said that one of his goals is to raise a "pious generation." Erdogan's supporters have hailed the Turkish leader's initiatives, arguing that they've reversed years of discrimination against practicing Muslims.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/C. Ozdel
Surviving a coup
In July 2016, a failed military coup targeting Erdogan and his government left more than 200 people dead, including civilians and soldiers. In the wake of the coup attempt, Erdogan declared a state of emergency and vowed to "clean up" the military. "In Turkey, armed forces are not governing the state or leading the state. They cannot," he said.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/K. Ozer
Nationwide crackdown
Since the failed coup, authorities have launched a nationwide crackdown, arresting more than 50,000 people in the armed forces, police, judiciary, schools and media. Erdogan has blamed Fethullah Gulen, a self-exiled cleric in the US and former ally, and his supporters of trying to undermine the government. But rights groups believe the allegations are a means to solidify his power and influence.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/E. Gurel
Divisive politician
While Erdogan enjoys significant support in Turkey and the Turkish expatriate community, he has been criticized for his heavy-handed policies and military campaigns against Kurdish militants following the collapse of a peace process in 2015. This January, Erdogan launched a deadly offensive into the northern Syrian enclave of Afrin, an operation that was widely condemned by human rights groups.
Image: picture- alliance/ZUMAPRESS/Brais G. Rouco
A new era?
Having served as Turkey's president since 2014, Erdogan successfully extended his time in office after winning elections in June. The elections marked Turkey's transition to an executive-style presidency. Observers believe the elections will herald a new era for Turkey – for better or worse.
