Akşener says she would accept to have breakfast with Demirtaş

ANKARA

İYİ (Good) Party leader Meral Akşener welcomed a statement by Selahattin Demirtaş, jailed former co-chair of People’s Democratic Party (HDP), who said he would visit the nationalist party leader for breakfast if he was free.

“I did not read the entire news. But I would like to say this. There is a tradition in the Southeast that even if you are in a blood feud, you will let them in when they knock on your door. He is met by the oldest person in the house. Then after leaving the door, the case continues. Southeast has such a feature,” she told Fox TV on Sept. 7, elaborating on remarks by Demirtaş.

“We established our party to eliminate polarization over values,” she stated.

“We have a human-oriented perspective. When I go somewhere, I say, ‘I have come to listen to you, not to make propaganda.’ You realize that everyone is in the same pain. We yield results in this journey to meet with the reason, not just to criticize but to offer solutions,” Akşener stated.

People don’t have to build deep friendships, but they have to show respect, Akşener said, stating that the problems could be solved in this way.

Stating to an online news site, Medyascope, HDP’s Demirtaş said all leaders could meet at any leader’s home for breakfast, just as part of a family visit and within the framework of humanitarian relations and try to get to know and understand each other better.

“For example, if I was outside, I would knock on Ms. Meral’s door with Başak [Demirtaş] one morning and say, ‘we came for breakfast’,” he stated.