Civilnet
The injured being carried away following two explosions at an election campaign rally in Diyarbakir, Turkey. Photo DHA.
Two explosions on June 5 at an election rally in Diyarbakir, Turkey has claimed two lives and has left scores injured. According to The Guardian, the blasts at the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) rally occurred five minutes apart just as the party leader, Selahattin Demirtas was about to address the crowd.
Initially it was believed that the explosions were caused by a power distribution unit which malfunctioned, but later Taner Yildiz, Turkey’s Minister of Energy said they were caused by “external interference” with the power unit. It remains unclear whether bombs were involved. According to Agos, Yildiz stated, “The entrance of the power station was damaged, however this was caused from an explosion that took place outside the station. The fact that the station continues to operate as normal is further proof that it was not related to the explosion.”
Turkish citizens will go to the polls on June 7 to elect their new parliament. The election campaign has been a tense time and the Kurdish vote promises to be a critical factor in the outcome. Turkey’s constitution requires political parties to secure 10 percent of the total vote in order to guarantee seats in parliament. The Guardian writes, “If it [HDP] succeeds, it could make it impossible for the ruling Justice and Development party (AKP) to reach a ‘super-majority.’” This would derail the AKP’s vision of amending the constitution to go from a parliamentary system to a presidential system that would bestow executive powers to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Prime Minister, Ahmet Davutoğlu said, “Whatever is behind this incident – whether it was a power transformer explosion, an assassination attempt, an act of provocation – we shall investigate it,” and called on the people of Diyarbakir to be aware of “exploitation of the incident and provocations.”
According to Hurriyet Daily News, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the target of the attack was the election. “It is obvious that the blasts aim to overshadow [Sunday’s elections],” Erdogan said and added that there are groups who want to overshadow “Democratic expansion, national unity and brotherhood projects.”
HDP Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtas.
In an interview with CNN Turk following the explosions, Demirtas called for people to use their common sense and said that “Turkey is in need of peace.”
Agos writes that after the explosions, Demirtas made the following statement: “We will stand shoulder to shoulder and overcome this attack. No doubt they will try to stop our march. They have tried to strike a blow to our heart everywhere. Yet what we need is peace...Since the explosions, people have called us from all four corners of Turkey, from the Black Sea, from the Mediterranean, to express their support. That is what they are trying to destroy. Everyone whose heart is beating for peace is with us today. We will retain our calm and continue our work. HDP is not a party that can be tricked by such set-ups.”
Kemal Kilicdaroglu of the main opposition party CHP said, “We wish a swift recovery to all our injured citizens. I also congratulate the HDP for cancelling the rally as an act of calm.”
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