Kurdish politician Gültan Kışanak, speaking about creating an inclusive legal system, said, “Change and transformation are at our doorstep. We can no longer continue like this. We need to move forward.”
Participating in the “Conference on the Democratic Transformation of the Republic in the Second Century,” held on June 13-14, 2026, at the Cem Karaca Cultural Center in Bakırköy Municipality, Istanbul, Kurdish politician Gültan Kışanak asked in her opening speech, “Will we be able to create an inclusive legal system?”
Kışanak, who had various contacts in Europe shortly before the conference, gave Niha+ her assessments regarding both her European trip and the content of her speech at the conference.
Gülten Kışanak, who participated in meetings and events in France and Germany, said that everyone there was asking, “When will the law be passed?” Stating that they asked, “We have prepared our governor. We want to come. They are expressing a longing and yearning for the law to be passed here. At the same time, they are expressing a desire for democratic transformation,” she provided the information.
“Demanding from the government doesn’t get us anywhere”
Regarding the question she raised in her opening speech at the conference, “Can we create an inclusive legal system?”, Kışanak said, “We need to fight for it”:
“If we want something, we can do it. But if we want someone to prepare it and bring it to us tomorrow, that’s not possible. Therefore, if you want something, you have to fight for it, put in the effort, and unleash its social power. I think this state of demanding from the government doesn’t get us anywhere.”
Noting the political challenges in making this happen, Kışanak said, “A change and transformation has arrived at our doorstep. We can no longer continue like this, we cannot carry on. We need to move forward. For this, we, as a society, need to take responsibility and do something. At the same time, there is no shortcut solution. This path is long, difficult, and arduous. We have no option but to walk this path.”
Regarding President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s statement at a program he attended in Edirne on June 12, 2026, where he said, “We have made significant progress on the path to this goal so far. God willing, we will increase our pace a little more,” Gülten Kışanak commented, “There are commitments. We all must follow up on these commitments. Even from the most authoritative sources, from the President himself, there are statements that the law will be passed before the parliament closes. We all now expect this to be done.”
When asked about whether the framework law, which has been the subject of behind-the-scenes discussions, will meet expectations, he said, “We are fighting to ensure it does. Just as we fought to get that commission report written in parliament, we will fight to ensure that this law is passed in a holistic and comprehensive manner.”