09.08.2026 18:00
Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavas issued stern warnings regarding the Framework Law proposal submitted to the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM). Drawing attention to the fact that the regulation carries serious drawbacks in terms of the Constitution and universal principles of law, Yavas emphasized that steps taken without addressing the public's concerns would lead to new crises. Saying, "Peace is not established by passing laws; its foundation is justice," Yavas stated that the process should be handled transparently under the roof of the TBMM.
Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavas, in response to the 'Framework Law' bill on the Turkish Grand National Assembly's agenda, made a highly comprehensive and harsh statement, listing his legal, political, and social objections. Yavas stated that the sincerity behind the discourses of peace and brotherhood should be questioned, pointing to a transparent and parliamentary process instead of backroom negotiations.
"PEACE IS NOT ACHIEVED MERELY BY PASSING A LAW"
Yavas began his statement by emphasizing social peace, brotherhood, and freedom, expressing that everyone would desire a country where weapons fall completely silent and no one is discriminated against because of their thoughts. However, the Mayor of Ankara Metropolitan Municipality stated that true peace cannot consist solely of a draft law, arguing that justice, law, trust, and social consensus must lie at its foundation.
OPERATIONS AGAINST CHP MUNICIPALITIES
Yavas, emphasizing that Turkey's biggest problem is the erosion of trust in the state and justice, criticized the attitudes towards opposition municipalities. Recalling the operations against CHP municipalities, decisions made before the trial concluded, the annulment of the will of elected officials through trustees, and the isolation of mayors in dungeon-type prisons, Yavas stated that in a climate where Constitutional Court and European Court of Human Rights decisions are not implemented, one cannot speak of inclusive democratization. He warned, "Democracy, law, and freedom are either for everyone or for no one."
"A CONSENSUS NOT APPROVED BY SOCIETY CREATES NEW PROBLEMS"
Drawing attention to the fact that jurists have very serious objections to the Framework Law submitted to the Turkish Grand National Assembly in terms of the Constitution and universal principles, Yavas said that steps taken without sufficient public debate and without addressing the concerns of society would produce new crises rather than solutions. Stating that they reject the political power merely announcing the result to the public, Yavas emphasized that the nation is not a passive spectator of this process but its true owner.
"THE PROCESS CANNOT BE INDEXED TO ELECTORAL CALCULATIONS"
Expressing that none of Turkey's problems, including the Kurdish issue, are unsolvable, Yavas questioned the sincerity of the current steps. Yavas noted that if the solution is indexed to the calculation of winning another election or staying in power for another term, the public will not trust it, and added that the impression of politicians previously jailed being turned into election material harms the process. Yavas argued that the solution should take shape transparently under the roof of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, not through secretive meetings.
"THE MEMORY OF OUR MARTYRS MUST NOT BE WRONGED"
Yavas concluded his statement by emphasizing social sensitivities and the conscience of the families of martyrs: "As citizens of this country, one of our most important responsibilities is not to allow our consciences to ache with the feeling that injustice has been done to the sacred memory of our martyrs, whose names we have engraved on our bridges, underpasses, and overpasses."