Speaking at the weekly press conference of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in Ankara, the HDP spokesperson Ebru Günay shared her evaluations regarding the recent debates in Turkey that have been sparked after a Turkish mobster boss, Sedat Peker’s tell-all YouTube videos, eagerly watched by millions of people in Turkey, in which he reveals close state-mafia links.

Recalling the history of coups in Turkey, Günay said, “Each coup in Turkey dragged our society into darkness and resulted in increased poverty, corruption and unlawfullness. The eradication of democratic politics brought with it the strengthened networks of mafia and mobsters. The coup mentality of 12 September [1980] and 28 Şubat [1997], is unfortunatelly still at work today.”

She added: “We face the same problems in Turkey of 2021. There is no law, there are continuous attacks on democratic politics, politicians are under arrest, trustees are appointed to the posts of the elected, the greatest injustices in the history of Turkey are witnessed, the women, students asking for their rights are subjected to torture, there is oppression of our civil society, on the academics and on the unions. The mobs are the allies of the government actually, they own the government. If this is not a coup, then what is?”

Günay stressed that the jailed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan had shared vital warnings regarding such a coup mechanism when the peace process was still ongoing in Turkey between during 2012 and 2015.

“Öcalan had warned that the coup mechanics and chaos in Turkey would be deepened unless a democratic solution of the Kurdish question was achieved. This chaos atmopshere, on one side of which there is the mafia and the mobsters and on the other side there is the state, is a product of this deadlock, is a product of these coup mechanics,” she said.

She went on: “However, these coup mechanics are not operated against the political power, but against the civil society and the opposition.

“The government, which moralises at each coup anniversary, actually stages a coup every day targeting the will of the society. In addition, saying, ‘These are your best days, worse is to come,’ threatening the opposition. Here, this is the coup and the only way to get rid of this coup mentality is with democracy.

“A democratic and joint struggle is a must right now, rather than just being a necessity. Otherwise such dark structures of mobsters and mafia will continue to spread right throughout the country.”

Defining Sedat Peker’s allegations as “confessions”, Günay said: “We have already known that such a government alliance including the army, the Ergenekon and paramilitary structures would be involved in crime up to their neck. Together with the confessions today, all society now witnesses this truth.”

Günay urged the democratic public in Turkey and everyone who is disturbed by the mafia-state relations to question how the things have evolved into such level of “decadance”.

“There are many reasons behind this decadance, but one of the most important reasons is the hostility towards the Kurds,” she said.

“If the peace process had not been the victim of the political plots of the government our society would not be discussing about mobs and mafia, but a level of democracy we would have been achieved.” she said.