‘No conflict in CHP’ over Kurdish bid

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has said the party’s recent initiative on the Kurdish issue has no opponents within the party.

“I’m not hopeless about a solution,” Kılıçdaroğlu said in an interview with private Sky360 news channel late June 13. “It is not right to consider the process only from the CHP’s angle, but I can say that there is no reaction from the party to what we have done.”

Kılıçdaroğlu met with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan last week to work on a 10-article plan to solve the Kurdish problem. Erdoğan was warm to the idea and said the ruling party and the CHP could continue cooperation, since the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) strictly opposed the proposals and refused to meet with the CHP leader.

Recent media reports suggested that the nationalist wing within the CHP was also uneasy about the party’s initiative.

Kılıçdaroğlu said the government could not solve a 30-year-old problem alone, adding that the MHP and the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) should also contribute to the process.

“The legitimate place to solve this problem is Parliament,” said Kılıçdaroğlu. “Politicians should debate about problems, Parliament cannot outsource them.”