Parents protesting their children's abduction by the PKK terrorist organization hope to reunite with their children in 2022 as they continued their demonstration for the 876th day on Tuesday outside the pro-PKK Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) headquarters in Turkey's southeastern Diyarbakır province.
Some of the families whose children with disabilities were abducted by the terrorists issued a statement to make their voices heard.
Esmer Koç said her daughter, Zübeyde, who is 40% hearing-impaired, was 16 when she was abducted in 2013.
Koç said she joined the sit-in in the hope she will soon be reunited with her daughter.
"The HDP and PKK didn't let me take my daughter to (the capital) Ankara to have her treated. I want my daughter back," she demanded.
Ruken Canbey joined the protest for her brother, Muhammet, who has a 70% disability report due to thalassemia, a blood disease.
Muhammet was taken away by the PKK terrorist group seven years ago when he was 16, said Canbey.
She said that her brother has anemia and must constantly take blood supplements.
Canbey said they tried to find her brother but the terrorist group threatened to kill them.
"There are many families here whose disabled children were kidnapped like my brother. Let everyone see the true face of the HDP and PKK," she said.
"We won't leave until our children return," she said, accusing the HDP of violating human rights.
The protest started when Hacire Akar turned up on the doorstep of the HDP’s Diyarbakır office one night, demanding to be reunited with her son. Akar’s son Mehmet returned home on Aug. 24, 2019, giving hope to other families. A week later, on Sept. 3, 2019, families inspired by Akar staged a collective sit-in protest.
Since then, the number of families demanding the return of their children who, they say, were deceived or kidnapped by the terrorist group, has been gradually growing.
Demonstrations have since spread to other provinces, including Van, Muş, Şırnak and Hakkari.
Families have not given up their posts despite difficult conditions, at times being threatened or ridiculed by HDP officials and those with links to the PKK terrorist organization. The protest continued despite the coronavirus pandemic, with the families taking the necessary precautions.
A significant number of suspected terrorists have begun to flee the PKK and surrender, but many terrorists lack the courage to leave the group out of fear of severe punishment if caught.
The HDP, long facing public scrutiny and judicial probes over its ties to the PKK, is under pressure from the growing civilian movement. Various groups from around Turkey have supported the Kurdish mothers in their cause, with many paying visits to the protests to show their solidarity.
In its more than 40-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union – has been responsible for the deaths of 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.