Stupidity, political decision, disgrace, monstrosity

Several representatives of the opposition parties in Turkey said they stood by Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu who was convicted on Wednesday over two years in prison, a decision which also brought along political ban if finalized by the supreme court.

TAYYIP TEMEL, PEOPLES’ DEMOCRATIC PARTY CO-VICE CHAIR: This ruling is a concrete example of the shameful situation of the judiciary in Turkey. Ekrem Imamoglu represents millions of people in Istanbul. In democracies, only people can decide whether politicians will do politics, not the courts who rule upon instructions. This practice emerged from the trustees. In this country, all kinds of practices are first tried on the Kurds, and when there is no reaction, every other opposition member will get their share of it.

We currently face closure and the political ban of hundreds of our party members. We do not accept this decision. We know that it was instructed by the government.

UMIT OZLALE, GOOD PARTY VICE PRESIDENT: In this country, a court has given a prison sentence that was ordered by a person who calls women "sluts" and young people "vile." The ruling is purely political. We must all stand against this. The fact that they make such a decision by laughing into their faces shows what the judiciary has become. It shows how afraid Erdogan is of the opposition.

IDRIS SAHIN, DEVA PARTY SPEAKER: We do not consider this ruling as a lawful one. We need to see the entire ruling but in terms of the legal opinion that was submitted to the file on the last day, it seems that the defamation crime did not take place.

What we can say politically is this: We believe that a ruling about a politician should be made by the people that chose him. Therefore, we believe that there is a great mistake made against the will of the people. As the DEVA Party, I would like to express that we stand by Imamoglu.

DOGAN DEMIR, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE FUTURE PARTY: The court ruling is a complete disgrace, it is grotesque. We did not expect such a decision, which is purely political and it has no legal basis. The ruling party could not digest losing Istanbul. Therefore, we strongly condemn it. AKP destroyed justice and law.