Thousands gather in Ankara to protest increasing PKK terror

Twelve nongovernmental organizations came together at Sıhhiye Square on Thursday to say "no to terrorism and yes to brotherhood." After gathering in various locations in Ankara, the first meeting point for demonstrators was Sıhhiye Square from where they later walked to the Parliament building. There were several important organizations among participants, including the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity (TOBB), Turkish Industry and Business Association (TÜSİAD), Independent Industrialists and Businessmen Association (MÜSİAD).

Roads connecting to Sıhhiye Square were closed off to traffic and security units took high security measures to ensure the safety of protesters. Only Turkish flags were allowed in the demonstration and the attending organizations were previously told to not bring any banners or flags of their own. Another anti-terror meeting, titled "Millions of Breaths as One Voice against Terror," is scheduled to be held by the Civilian Solidarity Platform (SDP) at the Yenikapı meeting area in Istanbul on Sunday, Sept. 20. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and Parliament Speaker İsmet Yılmaz will also be present at the meeting. The meeting will be followed by a press conference the next day on Sept. 21.

The meeting will be followed by a press conference the next day on Sept. 21. Holding a joint press conference with leaders of other nongovernmental organizations and trade bodies several days before the mass protest, TOBB Chairman Rıfat Hisarcıklıoğlu also said participants should leave aside symbols, including party flags and carry only Turkish flags instead. "We will say no to terrorism and yes to brotherhood," Hisarcıklıoğlu said, underscoring that the protest aims to bring everyone together as a nation with its "78 million citizens, regardless of [their] ethnicity, identity and faith."

He added that the common ground for everyone is democracy, rule of law and respect for human dignity and highlighted that democracy does not only mean rights and freedoms, but also entails responsibility, saying that nongovernmental organizations have mobilized with this sense of responsibility in mind and should display their position.

Despite national outrage against the PKK, both Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş opted to not mention the PKK in their statements after the deadly Dağlıca attack that killed 16 soldiers. Both leaders, who are rumored to have collaborated during the June 7 elections to get the HDP into Parliament, received harsh public criticism for not condemning the PKK terrorist organization, but rather taking aim at state officials. In later days, Kılıçdaroğlu took a tougher stance in his rhetoric against the PKK.