Turkey needs internal reconciliation, tolerance: CHP leader

ANKARA

Turkey needs an inclusive process for internal reconciliation through the restoration of tolerance, the main opposition leader has said, criticizing President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for “disrupting” long-existing social harmony in the country.

“The biggest crime he ever committed was eliminating tolerance in this country. In the past, people could meet, talk and get together although they had different opinions,” Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the leader of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), said in his weekly address to his lawmakers in parliament on Jan. 18.

Instead of talking about Erdoğan, the main opposition will focus on restoring tolerance and dialogue within the society, Kılıçdaroğlu said, “We have to embrace each other. That is why we call for unity and togetherness. That is why we insist on tolerance. We have started a journey for reconciliation, and we will continue it.”

“Our objective is to show the public that when we come to power, the state will have an inclusive perspective on the differences in our society and see them as a richness,” he noted.

Kılıçdaroğlu said he will not speak about Erdoğan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) in his meetings with the people in different parts of Turkey, stressing, “The problem is not about Erdoğan, it is about Turkey.”

Many people -- even the voters of the AKP and its ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) -- have serious concerns about the future of Turkey and their children, Kılıçdaroğlu said.

“Although our country is located in one of the most strategic locations with enormous resources, only a handful of elites can benefit from it. And the people are getting poorer. But we are not going to remain idle while our people’s dreams fade. We will do more than criticize Erdoğan.”