The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) elected Pervin Buldan and Sezai Temelli as its new co-chairpersons during a party congress in Ankara on Sunday, t24 reported.
According to the report 32,000 people attended the congress, although television stations instead chose to air a speech given by Devlet Bahçeli, leader of Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), at a party meeting that took place at the same time on Sunday.
Turkey has stepped up its crackdown on Kurdish politicians since 2016. Trustees have been appointed to dozens of municipalities in the country’s predominantly Kurdish Southeast, while hundreds of local Kurdish politicians have been arrested on terror charges. Ten HDP deputies including former Co-chairpersons Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ are still in prison