The country’s progressives, revolutionaries and democrats gathered in Ankara under the slogan “We are standing side by side on the path to a united opposition”. The forum, which began at 14.00 at the MMO Education and Culture Centre, was facilitated by Beyazıt İlhan, Fatoş Erol and Fevziye Sayılan. Delivering the opening address, former TMMOB President Emin Koramaz said, “Only the organised power, solidarity and joint struggle of the people can stop the current regime.” Oğuzhan Müftüoğlu, a BirGün columnist and one of the leading figures in the Turkish revolutionary movement, said, “We can win. If we learn our lessons sufficiently from the past and do not repeat our mistakes, this united struggle in the coming period will become a widespread force—a great force comprising the women, young people, pensioners, the working class and all patriots in Turkey who are most opposed to this regime. Whether we are facing imperialism or its extensions in Turkey, this united force will prevail. What we must do is organise this united struggle,” he said.

Delivering the opening address at the forum, Koramaz said, “Our country is experiencing one of the most severe crises in its history.” He added, “The process our country is going through is not a simple change of government, but a fundamental transformation of the regime. “We are not facing an ordinary regime; it is a one-man regime that has surrendered all institutions to the will of a single individual, flouts the law, and is systematically dismantling the Republic’s secular, scientific and public-spirited spirit,” he said. In his speech, Koramaz emphasised the following: “We believe that the struggle against this regime, which has turned into a system of evil, cannot be left to the will of a few politicians. Our way out does not lie in patching up this system, nor in perpetuating it with minor tweaks. Neither the empty promises of the establishment opposition nor top-down leadership changes will save us. Only the organised power, solidarity and joint struggle of the people can bring the current rulers to a halt. Our expectation from today’s meeting is that the discussions beginning here today, and the proposals put forward, will be disseminated to other provinces of our country and translated into concrete steps in the coming days.”

THE QUESTION OF THE FUTURE

The key points highlighted by the speakers at the forum were as follows:

Ali Ekber Çakar, Chair of the TMMOB Executive Board: “I believe we are experiencing the most difficult times in the history of the Republic. When we consider the First World War, the Second World War, the 1960 coup, the economic crises and turmoil in between, and the coup attempts of 12 March and 12 September, the individual wrong decisions being taken in the country today are not the result of poor governance or a temporary economic crisis. We are faced with a reactionary government that is reshaping the state in line with the needs of capital, closing ministries, opening new ones, merging ministries, rendering Parliament dysfunctional, selling off the Republic’s achievements at bargain prices, dismantling the public sphere, and seeking to disband organised civil society and neutralise the political will of the people. A united, collective struggle must be established as a permanent, organised right that addresses the people’s problems. Our future must be built on the shared voice, will and struggle of those who live by their labour, women, young people, pensioners and rural communities. This regime governs society not only through repression and bans, but also through poverty, insecurity and a lack of prospects. The fact that young people are forced to seek their futures in other countries, that pensioners are compelled to work just to make ends meet, that women’s most fundamental rights and lives are under constant threat, and that millions of people have no confidence in the future are all direct consequences of this system. The point we have reached and the question at hand concern a democratic future. I emphasise this once again. The question at the point we have reached today is that of a democratic future.”

Özkan Atar, General Secretary of the United Metal Workers’ Union: “We know that one of the primary issues and problems underlying the injustices in income distribution—which is at the root of all the negative developments in our country, particularly in the economy, and which has led us to experience the most adverse periods in the history of the Republic—is the lack of organisation. However, we also wish to emphasise that this is the most important issue reminding us that the struggle we must undertake and the tasks ahead must be addressed in a far more serious manner. Dear friends, there is no need for any section of society to disregard its own struggle, its own objectives, key issues and specific demands when coming together to unite our forces for a common struggle. What matters fundamentally is a grand, united gathering centred on democracy and labour, and the ability to generate the energy and synergy capable of mobilising all sections of society.”

WE MUST SHOW COURAGE

Academic Burcu Sarı: “As the writer says, hope is the most dangerous poison because if dreams do not come true, it consumes a person. This country gives us so much hope. Just when we’re about to say ‘what a shame’, out of nowhere a young comedian pops up and says, ‘Yes, we really need to do something in this country; we need to show a bit of courage.’ Then we see miners coming forward, saying, ‘We’re dying; we’re going on hunger strike.’ So, we’ve been fighting together in so many areas for years now, but I think the thing that the government has tried hardest to take from us is our hope. I believe that simply being able to stand side by side is a victory in itself. I’m full of hope and very happy to be here today. And most of us probably come from the front lines of these struggles anyway. We know what we have to do. The issue is simply a matter of bringing our neighbours, our friends, our students and our children here too.” Economist Seyhan Erdoğdu: “It’s a very enthusiastic audience. I’d like to draw your attention to a couple of things. The first is that we are living in changing times.

Changing times, both globally and in Turkey. And changing times are always very difficult times. We need to be aware of this. We must anticipate now what has changed within us and what will change even more in the days ahead, and we must define the line of this united front, this solidarity, amidst the difficult conditions of these changing times.”

Fatih Erdoğan, a student at METU: “Giving a voice to every group opposed to the one-man regime and the system, and helping to build networks of solidarity amongst them, is a responsibility, and young people are doing their bit in this regard. Interventions by the judiciary, the police or provocateurs cannot and will not destroy youth politics.”

Şenal Sarıhan from Citizens’ Solidarity: “Whatever needs to be done during this period, dear friends, is to find the way and means to struggle together. For a long time now, within our own ranks—that is, within Citizens’ Solidarity—we have been using this motto: ‘Either all together, or all together.’ Because we absolutely must struggle. We absolutely must roll up our sleeves.” CHP Party Assembly Member İlhan Cihaner: “The efforts of all the generations who have fought in Turkey up to now—those who suffered torture before 12 September, those who fought for equality, freedom, justice, labour rights, academic freedom, and perhaps even for sexual orientation rights, animal rights, and ecological causes—now rest on our shoulders. That is why we must succeed on this path.”

WE WILL STAND TOGETHER

Prof. Dr Selçuk Candansayar, President of the Turkish Psychiatric Association: “We won’t be discovering anything new. It’s very clear. We will form the broadest possible front. And whilst forming this broadest front, the slogan is extremely fitting. We will stand side by side. We must find a common ground. A hundred years ago, that common ground was the eight-hour working day. In other words, people died fighting for the right to a 40-hour working week. Today, perhaps we are simply obliged to fight for an increase in the minimum wage. We must do this first.”

Zeynel Abidin Ergen, General President of the Union of All Pensioners: “They keep shutting us down time and again. They shut us down, we reopen, and when we reopen, they shut us down again. We will not surrender to a mindset that confines our democratic rights and freedom of association within the boundaries of this system. Nor will we conduct our struggle within the limits they have drawn. It’s very clear. That is why the statement we see here—‘standing side by side on the path of a united opposition’—holds great significance for us.”

Kayıhan Pala, CHP Member of Parliament for Bursa: “If we can bring together as broad a cross-section of society as possible around a common goal, it will be possible to remove the regime—which, according to current surveys, seventy per cent of the country opposes—from power. In doing so, it is vital that we set aside, at least for a while, questions of which organisation we come from or what framework we operate within, and set out on this path by stating that this is the condition for standing side by side.” The meeting concluded with a call for a forum to be held in Istanbul next week.

WE CAN WIN BY LEARNING FROM OUR EXPERIENCES

Oğuzhan Müftüoğlu, a writer for BirGün, said in his speech at the forum: “I am someone who has lived through the last 50 years of the Republic of Turkey. I have been involved in the left-wing struggle since the 1960s. A very long time has passed since the days when we took to the streets with Dev Genç in the 1960s chanting ‘Independent Turkey’, and then went through the period in which Mahir, Deniz and Ulaş lost their lives; coups have come and gone. We were defeated on 12 March, we were defeated on 12 September; we have arrived here through a series of defeats and mistakes. The point we have reached today is far behind where we started,” he said. Referring to past examples of united struggle, Müftüoğlu added, “We are in the midst of a very important struggle. All of Turkey’s workers, all its women and young people are opposed to this regime. However, because the opposition is fragmented, because we are not engaged in an organised struggle, and because we have failed to learn from the mistakes of the past to build a stronger resistance, this process is able to continue in a negative manner,” he said.

Oğuzhan Müftüoğlu continued: “If we learn sufficiently from the past, avoid repeating our mistakes, and organise this united struggle more widely in the coming period, we can succeed. A force comprising women, young people, pensioners, the working class and all patriots – who are the most vocal opponents of this regime in Turkey – is a formidable force. Whether we are facing imperialism or its extensions in Turkey, this united force will prevail. What we must do is organise this united struggle. It is an important and difficult task. We must be fully aware of this.” “We are no longer in the Turkey of 20 years ago,” said Müftüoğlu, adding: “Whether it be the army, the intelligence services or the judiciary, all state institutions have fallen into the hands of the opposition. We must realise that simply electing a president or winning parliamentary elections will not be enough.”

Müftüoğlu concluded by noting: “It will not be enough simply to win an election. To this end, it is vital to organise an opposition front in which all opposition forces – whether youth or women – are actively and systematically involved. It will not end with winning the election; a difficult period of struggle lies ahead, during which the fight to achieve our goals will continue even after the election. I wish you all success in this struggle.”

TIME TO ORGANISE HOPE

Gökhan Günaydın, Deputy Group Chair of the CHP, stated the following in his speech at the forum: “They are dressing Turkey up in the guise of a benevolent monarchy. They are telling us and our region – not just Turkey, but the entire region stretching from North Africa to the Middle East – that we think of ourselves as human beings, that we harbour strange assumptions about being capable of being governed by democracy, and that they have tried it and it doesn’t work for us. Therefore, they say, we will give you a monarchy. Friends, Turkey is facing this challenge. Either it will accept the garment being imposed upon it—worn today by Erdoğan and tomorrow by his cronies—or it will say ‘no’ to this with dignity, come what may; we stand alongside those who say ‘no’. As a brother who has always stood by the organisation of a united opposition, I believe it is of the utmost importance to bring our common demands together with firm conviction and determination, without losing the vibrancy and diversity of our voices in Turkey. Our anger is great. Now is the time to turn that anger into hope; now is the time to organise that hope.”

Note: This article is translated from the original article titled Saray rejimini ancak birleşerek yenebiliriz, published in BirGün newspaper on July 20, 2026.