Speaking at the commission, Bülent Arınç discussed the right to hope and the general amnesty.

The National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission established in the Turkish Grand National Assembly convened for the seventh time today.

The commission's meeting today heard from former speakers of the Turkish Grand National Assembly. Speaking at the meeting, Bülent Arınç, the 22nd Speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, made striking remarks regarding the right to hope and general amnesty.

Arınç stated that the right to hope, which has been brought to the forefront for Abdullah Öcalan, must be implemented without fail. He also emphasized the imperative need for a general amnesty.

"I am a friend of yours who has been interested in this issue for a long time. Lastly, when I was deputy prime minister, I took part in the peace process that lasted from 2009 to 2015 and unfortunately ended negatively," Arınç said, highlighting his role in the past peace process. Here are some highlights from his statements:

At the time, I stated that this issue should be pursued by a parliamentary commission. I'm happy that all parties except the İYİ Party are here. I wish that party were here as well, expressing its views. I'm sure they will pursue a path that aligns with their own policies from the outside. This process, which began nearly a year ago, is continuing positively. A terror-free Turkey is everyone's wish, but the task of this commission is to bring this process to a positive conclusion. The conditions for this are national solidarity, in other words, social peace. I've been involved in politics for years, always alongside Kurds. We've always stated that we are brothers and sisters with the Kurds. However, in terms of political discourse, the situation has reached such a point that Kurdish politicians have begun to say, 'Forget brotherhood, first accept us as equal citizens.' They've even begun to say, 'We elect MPs and mayors, but you imprison them and appoint trustees. Where are we supposed to engage in politics?' We must respond to these; we cannot embark on a path of empty rhetoric. It is our shame to disregard the brotherhood that has existed for millennia, and even to implement assimilation policies in some way. We must abandon these practices. We've reached a point where the sea ends and the ship runs aground. Therefore, we must seize this opportunity.

"IT CANNOT BE DONE WITH WHAT BAHÇELİ AND ERDOĞAN SAID AND DID BEFORE OCTOBER"

I implore the committee here and the party representatives outside: forget whatever rhetoric you've used in the past. If you don't forget these, radical rhetoric could block our path. Let's move forward. Otherwise, we won't be able to do what Mr. Bahçeli said before October, or what Mr. Erdoğan did before October. We were all surprised by the process Mr. Bahçeli initiated. At first, I was surprised that things we might have laughed off if someone from so high up among us said, were uttered by a party leader who has declared his opposition to this for years. If it hadn't been initiated from so high up, we wouldn't have reached this point. Today, everything is moving smoothly. Sometimes leaders do things that go down in history with these steps. The path we've just embarked on isn't warfare with conventional weapons. We need to end this process with new methods. Is there a social consensus? There is. When you say, "No more coffins," 90 percent of them will approve. The republic is indispensable to us, but there are some countries that are republics in name but governed by Sharia law. For us, a republic is a republic crowned with democracy. The further we are from democracy, the more it has nothing to offer to its citizens in the name of democracy, even if it is called a republic.

"THE BEST CONSTITUTION IS THE CONSTITUTION THAT IS APPLIED"

Democracy must be what it says. You may disagree with some provisions in the current constitution, you can change them, and you can draft a new one, but "the best constitution is one that is implemented, the worst constitution is one that is not implemented." I find it very wrong to try to take the aspects of the current constitution that are beneficial to us and postpone the provisions I deem ineffective. We always need a new, modern constitution with fewer articles, one that is liberal in terms of fundamental rights and duties. But I don't think this commission's role is to draft a new constitution.

Some issues need to be addressed at the domestic front. There are economic difficulties, and we are all experiencing these difficulties together. Those in charge of the economy have rolled up their sleeves and implemented their own measures to combat inflation. Within this commission, we must be very patient and support those in charge of financial and economic matters, excluding the opposition. The second stakeholder is the developments in Syria. This process is of great interest. The number of terrorists in Türkiye has decreased so much that we practically knew the size of their shoes. I also view the President's steps regarding Syria positively. I hope that the decisions to end this terrorism will be inclusive within Syria.

"ECHR AND CONSTITUTIONAL COURT DECISIONS MUST BE IMPLEMENTED"

Terrorism is a swamp; you can't deal with it by killing a few. We've been fighting terrorists for years, but we haven't done much to address the causes that give rise to the phenomenon of terrorism. But the swamp has stopped there. We've only just reached the point of fighting terrorism. Hopefully, we will succeed. The decisions of the ECHR and the Constitutional Court must be implemented. I want to reiterate this. Freedom of expression needs to be strengthened. What we implemented in the first 10 years were provisions that strengthened freedom of expression. Today, there are problems in this regard. No freedom is unlimited, but these restrictions must be reasonable and lawful. A change was made to the criminal enforcement legislation 3-5 years ago, but it was inadequate. However, after July 15th, those who were tried and imprisoned in a certain way were left in the category of three-fourths. Women with children, teachers, doctors, etc.

THE RIGHT TO HOPE AND THE GENERAL AMNESTY

The issue of the right to hope was raised with Mr. Bahçeli's speech. It must absolutely be implemented and fulfilled. Let's not think about this or that person benefiting from the right to hope. Perhaps ten years have passed since the ECHR's decision on the right to hope. Even those sentenced to life imprisonment should absolutely consider their potential release. I view a general amnesty as a vital necessity. Especially at a time when human rights violations have reached their peak, the limits of a general amnesty, its scope and validity period, and the exclusion of certain crimes, should be considered and discussed. Those dismissed by statutory decrees are suffering greatly. I see that some of my closest relatives, who were acquitted, are unable to perform their duties today. In this context, some acceptable arrangements can be made for the process, provided they remain within the law.

Source: News Center