Today is December 10 Human Rights Day, which marks the 72nd year since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).

 

On this occasion, 805 citizens from different backgrounds, professions and institutions such as academics, writers, lawyers and physicians have released a joint statement expressing their "common aim and demand for a dignified and serene life, in a just, free and peaceful country, where their daily bread and health will be safe and secure."

 

"While the pandemic deepens the economic, political and social crisis, we need to envisage a new set of social relations and a radical change in our way of looking at the world, in order to attain the kind of humane life that we long for and deserve," the citizens have said and added:

 

FROM AUTHORIATAIRANISM TO TOTALITARIANIZM

 

"It is increasingly clear that the one-man regime is neither able to pull the country out of the disintegration it has engendered, nor can it invent a new scenario. The aggressive reaction of the powers that be to the debate over their 'reform' discourse, has once again proven that their rhetoric serves only to delude and mislead the public.

 

"Above all, they see the evolution of the current regime from authoritarianism to totalitarianism as a guarantee of their continued rule.

 

WHAT STEPS SHOULD BE TAKEN?

 

We say that no rhetoric of reform can be convincing, or solve any of our urgent problems, before:

 

• A fair amnesty is declared, covering especially political prisoners, rather than discriminatory and arbitrary, sporadic discharges,

 

• Opposition writers and politicians, who are held in prison in defiance of the rulings of the (Turkish) Constitutional Court and European Court of Human Rights, are set free,

 

• Independence of the courts from the administration is ensured, and the Council of Judges and Prosecutors is reorganized,

 

• Thousands of people, who, by means of "State of Emergency Decrees with the Force of Law" (in the wake of the 15 July 2016 coup attempt), were summarily and without due process dismissed from their jobs, their passports seized, while some are continuing to serve jail sentences, finally have their rights restored,

 

• More than 80 elected mayors representing millions of voters, but were illegally replaced by the government, are returned to their positions,

 

• Threats to women's rights cease and equal rights come into effect – (c.f. the Istanbul Convention)

 

• The plundering of natural resources and the environment for the sake of profits is prevented; all the licenses and grandiose "crazy" projects, which destroy and will continue to destroy nature of which human beings are a part, are revoked, and resources directed towards the basic needs of the people.

 

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION IS THE CORNERSTONE

 

Today, while problems are piling up like mountains, we demand our right to a dignified and peaceful life together, where we can look to the future with confidence, and we say:

 

• A prerequisite for a dignified existence is that each and every person has food, a job, and a minimum income sufficient to live in humane conditions. People's needs for health, shelter, education must be guaranteed by the state and the costs covered by appropriate provisions in the budget.

 

• It is the duty of the state, to ensure equal rights and protection for all identities, religions, denominations or beliefs, tongues and cultures, without any discrimination. Everyone who lives in this country, regardless of their identities, opinions, lifestyles, is equal before the law and in the social domain. Freedom and equality are the preconditions for the establishment of a commonality, and for society to become "us" again.

 

• Democratic participation is the cornerstone of a shared existence and a joint future. In order for all sections of the populace, without exception, to express themselves freely and equally, to organize and to take part in self-administration, the mechanisms for democratic participation must be safeguarded.

 

WE NEED TO NOURISH OUT HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

 

"At this very critical step, we are in great need of keeping up and nourishing our hope for the future. For 82 million citizens to live freely with equal rights, within the common demands of the people, we believe that, regardless of whether each wing is represented in the parliament or not, a democratic alliance, which will leave no democratic initiative outside its circle and will be the voice of different aspirations all over the country, including women's movements, environmental movements, artisans' guilds, agricultural cooperatives, trade unions, professional associations, civil societal organizations, platforms for rights and justice, with the consent and mass support of the people, can become the hope of millions.

 

"When this is accomplished, people will head for the light and will give their support to those, who nurture this hope, for our country to reach level ground once again. We expect the democratic opposition to show this courage, assume its duties and responsibilities, and swiftly take the bold step to form an inclusive democratic alliance.