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Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş called on people in Batman to stay alert against anyone trying to derail the Terror-Free Turkey process through provocation, urging care in words, actions and conduct. Speaking to civil society representatives and community leaders at the Hatice Nasıroğlu Conference Hall in the Necat Nasıroğlu Complex, Kurtulmuş said the process would end terrorism that has occupied half a century of the country's history.

Kurtulmuş also reviewed the work of parliament's National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission and the law on strengthening national solidarity and social integration, which was backed by 467 lawmakers. Batman Governor Ekrem Canalp and AK Party Batman MP Ferhat Nasıroğlu also spoke, and Kurtulmuş later met with young people at the same complex.

Parliament speaker meets civil society in Batman

Turkey's Grand National Assembly Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş met representatives of the city's civil society organizations and community leaders at the Hatice Nasıroğlu Conference Hall in the Necat Nasıroğlu Complex during a visit to Batman. Kurtulmuş said he was pleased to be together with the city's civil society representatives.

Saying that the world and Turkey are going through a very difficult period, Kurtulmuş argued that Turkey has emerged as one of the countries shining brightest on the global stage. In this turbulent climate, he said, the country needs to reinforce its inner fortress, and the Terror-Free Turkey process will bring an end to the terrorism that has consumed half a century of the country's life.

Kurtulmuş said a stronger reasoning than imperial projects is required. "This is what we call state wisdom," he said, arguing that the demands of the public for peace and the state's goal of restoring order in the region have converged in this process.

Kurtulmuş said Israel's aggressive actions and the resulting upheaval across the region played a part in launching the steps toward a Terror-Free Turkey. Reason, he said, requires preventing an aggressive regional actor from further dividing the region, including Turkish territory, and sowing discord among its peoples. He said the process was launched to protect the country's 86 million people and hundreds of millions more across the wider geography.

Kurtulmuş also pointed to the effectiveness of the fight against terrorism, led by the Turkish Armed Forces, saying the terrorist organization now has no option but to lay down its arms and move to a climate genuinely free of terror. He added that those who have pursued designs on the region, armed groups and provided intelligence and logistical support now see that Turkey is not weak. "Turkey is strong in every field, a country that keeps its word, and they have no choice but to cooperate with Turkey," he said.

Kurtulmuş said the process had reached a point that in many countries' conflict resolution examples takes eight or ten years to achieve. "After a while, terrorism will be off our agenda completely, and these talks will belong to the chapter of historic addresses of the past," he said.

Law on national solidarity backed by 467 MPs

Kurtulmuş described the work of the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission in parliament and noted that the Law on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integration had been adopted in the same period.

He said the report accepted with the participation of all parties and the law approved by 467 lawmakers showed that parliament is capable of resolving every problem and that politics is the sole owner of all of Turkey's issues. He congratulated and thanked colleagues, party leaders, commission members and parliamentary officials who contributed, adding that it had not been easy.

Kurtulmuş said the public's sensitivities were taken into account as the process reached its current stage. "I assure you that not just every sentence, but every word of this report and this law has been accounted for," he said, adding that the law leaves no room for gaps or unexpected developments and will lead to major steps toward a Terror-Free Turkey.

Developments in Syria and Iraq

Kurtulmuş said developments in the international and regional sphere that favor Turkey have also taken place during the process, referring to events in Syria and Iraq. On the announcement that the PKK's offshoot in Sinjar will lay down its arms and be integrated into the Iraqi army, he said he hoped terrorism would be eliminated in Syria, Iraq and all other regions, and that a terrorism-free region would be built.

He stressed that the peoples of the region remain united despite large-scale imperial games. The issue, he said, is not only disarming an organization, passing a law or preparing a report, but demonstrating a will and determination. "Through the work carried out in Turkey over two years, the door has been opened fully," he said, describing it as a door of brotherhood, unity and togetherness for all elements of the geography.

Warning against discrimination and separatism

Kurtulmuş called on everyone to be careful during the process. "We must be vigilant against those who will want to provoke in order to derail this process. For that we must take special care with our words, our actions and the work we do," he said. He added that their culture has no place for othering or looking down on anyone.

Kurtulmuş said people cannot be belittled or discriminated against on the basis of race, family, social class, mother tongue or any other feature. "We will give no credence to separatist rhetoric and no credence to discriminatory rhetoric," he said. "We will neither discriminate nor pursue separatism, and we will never engage in tribalism," he said, adding that all people descend from the same lineage.

Governor and MP call for lasting peace

Batman Governor Ekrem Canalp said the coming years should be ones in which terrorism is never discussed in Turkey again. The conditions that give rise to terrorism, Canalp said, must never be allowed to exist in the country again. Some of those conditions require legal regulations and some require political steps, while a very important part requires an economic foundation, which comes from turning the region into one that continuously delivers prosperity to its people. "The Turkey of the coming years, the Turkey of the next century, will be such a Turkey," Canalp said.

AK Party Batman MP Ferhat Nasıroğlu described Batman as a city that knows the value of peace and carries the worth of brotherhood in its heart. Nasıroğlu said people want to build the future together by learning from past pain, and that the aim is a Turkey where terrorism has ended, brotherhood is strengthened and resources are mobilized for the prosperity of the nation. Nasıroğlu said the will shown under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's leadership is one of the main pillars of the goal of leaving the terrorism issue behind for good.

After the program, Kurtulmuş received a delegation of Yazidi representatives.

Kurtulmuş meets young people in Batman

Later at the Necat Nasıroğlu Complex, Kurtulmuş met with young people. He wished them success and thanked the Nasıroğlu family and AK Party Batman MP Ferhat Nasıroğlu for their contribution to the complex, which he said serves the city well with its mosque, mourning house, library and soup kitchen.

Kurtulmuş said Turkey is located in the world's most difficult geography but has made very important gains, developing continuously in the economy, industry, trade, foreign policy, science and the arts. He said differences of opinion, character, lifestyle and political thought are entirely natural and should be seen as a source of wealth, and noted that past attempts to split the country's youth along right-left or sectarian lines are now behind them.

Speaking about Batman, Kurtulmuş said districts such as Sason, Gercüş, Beşiri and Hasankeyf once saw times when civilians could not move about freely, and that those days are gone. He said Batman University has become a notable institution with 15,000 students and that opportunities are expanding.

He urged young people to know their country, history, culture and geography well and to work with high self-confidence, whether as athletes or students. After his speech, Kurtulmuş listened to the young people's views, took notes and answered their questions. He then toured the complex and was briefed by officials.

Key takeaways

• Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş warned in Batman against provocation aimed at derailing the Terror-Free Turkey process.
• He said the law on national solidarity and social integration, backed by 467 MPs, leaves no room for gaps or unexpected developments.
• Kurtulmuş pointed to the announced disarmament of the PKK's Sinjar offshoot as a step toward a terrorism-free region.
• Governor Ekrem Canalp said the conditions that produce terrorism must never return, and called for an economic foundation of prosperity.