Some media outlets are spreading claims that the Collaboration of Socialist Forces, of which our party is a founding member, or some member Parties of the Collaboration, will join the Labour and Freedom Alliance.
The Collaboration of Socialist Forces emerged by defending principles that have a historical foundation, yet without limiting itself within the scope of elections. It acted with the idea that the socialist movement should have its own force independent from order politics.
During its foundational period, the Collaboration of Socialist Forces emphasized the principles of anti-imperialism, secularism and a planned-public sector economy. It called on all political organizations that truly defend these principles to act together.
The goal of an independent, sovereign, secular country and an egalitarian social order based on a statist-planned economy are not mere details to be ignored and put aside during electoral periods. On the contrary, what we need most is to promote these values, especially during the electoral periods as many people engage more in politics.
In this sense, it is inappropriate for the left-socialist forces, which bear the responsibility of representing these values, to focus on electoral maths and parliamentary seat calculations.
It is of course possible to seek ways to break the electoral threshold, which is an outcome of 12 September coup d’etat fascism. However, it is also obvious that we must stay away from approaches that trivialize the organized people’s movement and our revolutionary principles, which are the only way to permanently overcome the barriers to socialism in Turkey.
In recent weeks, the Communist Party of Turkey has called on all the left-socialist-communist forces of Turkey to form a strong and independent electoral alliance against imperialism, reaction and exploitation and declared that this alliance would create a great energy that would overcome not only the electoral threshold but also many other obstacles in people’s view of socialism.
The main reason why this call did not yield the desired result is the differences in the approach towards the HDP. The position of HDP, which has a multi-component structure, with regards to NATO, the European Union, imperialism’s regional plans, sects and communities, the capitalist class of Turkey and similar issues, and about the most sensitive and critical historical period of our country, the years 1919-1924, makes a political cooperation with HDP impossible for TKP.
The AKP government’s unlawful and often blackmailing aggression towards the HDP, and the responsibility of solidarity against this aggression and tyranny, do not abolish the political distinctions we have mentioned.
The Communist Party of Turkey rejects a political culture that is contentless, person-based, where programmes and principles are set aside and calculations prevail.
In addition to this, TKP considers it wrong in terms of political ethics to obtain parliamentary seats by utilizing the voting potential of HDP or any other party’s voters and sees it as disrespectful to the voters of those parties in the first place.
Our party already categorically rejects the method of sharing regions, which also includes not participating in elections in some regions of Turkey.
There is neither the time nor the ground left for the creation of an “electoral alliance” that will overcome the electoral threshold, which in fact is against fundamental rights and freedoms, while preserving the political diversity and independence of the parties.
TKP will participate in parliamentary elections in all cities and electoral districts of Turkey.
No one should doubt that we will utilize the recent widespread interest in our party and the energy of thousands of TKP volunteers who have joined us to make a historical leap in the name of enlightenment, patriotism, republicanism and socialism in Turkey.