HDP co-chair: "We have to prepare for the worst"

The- co-chair of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), who is faced with a closure case in Turkey's Constitutional Court, said that they are prepared for the worst scenario.

Asked by Ayse Sayin of BBC Turkish what kind of preparations they are making ahead of a ruling by the court, Mithat Sancar said:

"It is obvious that we have to prepare for the worst scenarios. It is not possible to make projections on possible rulings merely in the context of the law. Everybody who is familiar with Turkey's realities know that the political situation and government's interventions will play an important role. We have made preparations for all possible scenarios."

Asked about some rumors that there may be differences between the angles of the party's leadership and imprisoned former co-chair Selahattin Demirtas, Sancar said:

"As a matter of fact, differences between standpoints are normal, but we do not have those kinds of differences as speculated in the public. Such speculations are the result of disruptions in the communication between us and Demirtas. We continue to consult with him and our other former co-chair, who are being held in prison as political hostages. This is true particularly in the case of Demirtas. We try to keep in contact as regularly as we can under current conditions. We do not have differences concerning the essentials of our policies. We are aware that his primary objective is to provide support for these policies."

Asked about Demirtas's recent application to have a video call with Abdullah Ocalan, the incarcerated leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) who is being held in solitary confinement, and whether or not the party's leadership have objections about that, Sancar said:

"First of all, I would like to note that we ourselves made an application to meet with Ocalan as well. Let me explain why. Everybody know that Ocalan has an important role to play to end the armed conflict and for a progress towards a peaceful solution in a period when policies of war have become so acute."

He added:

"The rumors that we have objected to Demirtas's application to meet with Ocalan are not true. His application that followed ours has been within our knowledge. On the other hand, we are not in a position to tell him what to do and what not to do. We are in contact anyway, and we take steps through consultation, with the objective of acting in harmony. His recent application was within our knowledge."