Current HDP co-chairs Pervin Buldan and Sezai Temelli issued a press statement on May 25 in front of the prison where Demirtas is held, saying they “hoped Demirta would be released as soon as possible.”
The HDP has presented Demirtas as its presidential candidate for the upcoming elections to be held on July 24 and the Supreme Board of Elections (YSK) officially approved his candidacy on May 13.
Saying that Demitas is being kept in jail “unlawfully,” Buldan vowed to “take Demirtas everywhere with us, his pictures, videos and voice," Hurriyet daily reported.
“Our presidential candidate Selahattin Demirtas is the candidate of millions, he is the hope of millions,” Buldan said, referring specifically to the number of votes that the HDP acquired in the June 2015 general elections.
“You can hold Demirtad in between four walls, but you cannot erase him from millions’ hearts ever. Your fear is out from Demirtas’s courage,” Buldan added, addressing reporters and HDP supporters gathered in front of the prison.
Temelli, meanwhile, said the HDP will apply to the Constitution Court for Demirtas’s release, also calling on the top court to rule in favor of Demirtas as otherwise the legal system would “further be dragged into a crisis.”
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