Violations of the rule of law, principles of democracy, and fundamental rights in Türkiye, notably the cases of mayors Mehmet Sıddık Akış and Abdullah Zeydan

MEPs are deeply concerned about Türkiye’s disregard of the rule of law and the government’s violation of the fundamental principles of democracy, such as the practice of replacing democratically elected mayors with government-appointed trustees in predominantly Kurdish regions.

Condemning the arbitrary dismissal and imprisonment of democratically elected mayors, MEPs call for their immediate release, acquittal and reinstatement. They demand judicial reforms to abolish the trustee system, especially given the impact of these violations on local governance in Kurdish-majority areas, underlining the need to resume the Kurdish peace process.

MEPs recall that EU financial assistance to Türkiye is conditional upon the country’s respect for the rule of law and fundamental rights, and urge the Commission to consider…