Party of the Greens and the Left Future

Party of Greens and the Left Future (Turkish: Yeşiller ve Sol Gelecek Partisi, YSGP), abbreviated as Green Left Party (Turkish: Yeşil Sol Parti, YSP), is a green and left-libertarian party in Turkey.

Party of Greens and the Left Future
Yeşiller ve Sol Gelecek Partisi
AbbreviationYEŞİL SOL PARTİ (official)
YSP, YSGP (unofficial)
Co-SpokespersonsAhmet Asena
Didem Betül Göçer
Founded25 November 2012 (2012-11-25) (first)
24 November 2023 (2023-11-24) (second)[1]
Merger ofEquality and Democracy Party
Greens Party (first)
Merged intoPeoples' Equality and Democracy Party (first)
HeadquartersAtatürk Bulvarı No:88 Daire: 16 ÇankayaAnkara
IdeologyGreen politics
Left-libertarianism
Anti-capitalism
Alter-globalization
Direct democracy
Secularism
Anti-Zionism
Political positionCentre-left to left-wing
National affiliationPeoples' Democratic Congress
Labour and Freedom Alliance
European affiliationEuropean Green Party associate member[2]
Colours    Green, Red
Grand National Assembly
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Website
yesilsolparti.org

History

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Logo of the first "Green Left Party"

The first YSP was founded on 25 November 2012 as a merger of the Greens Party and the Equality and Democracy Party. The party changed its name in April 2016. Prominent members include Murat Belge, left-wing political author and former columnist for Taraf; Kutluğ Ataman, filmmaker and contemporary artist; and Ufuk Uras, former Istanbul deputy and president of the Freedom and Solidarity Party (ÖDP).

The party is one of the participants in the Peoples' Democratic Congress (HDK), a political initiative instrumental in founding the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) in 2012.

Their chairpersons were temporarily arrested in February 2018 but released with a travel ban for the exterior and under monitoring of the police. They were charged over social media activity and books in their possession.[3]

In the 2023 parliamentary election, members of the HDK most famously the HDP ran on the YSP list because of the threat of a ban. YSP was transformed into the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party on 15 October 2023 and a new YSP was founded in November of the same year.

Political positions

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The party supports decentralization and advocates for significantly shifting central powers to local governments.[4] Ufuk Uras identifies as a left libertarian. In 2015 he said:

The libertarian left is different from the traditional left because of its principles. These are: going in and out of power through elections, respect for different identities and beliefs, socially libertarian, egalitarian, eco-minded, participatory and for the restoration of justice. We would like the HDP to have such a profile. What we are trying to do is to adopt the Syriza experience in Greece to the HDP in Turkey.[5]

The party has formally acknowledged the Armenian genocide.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Yeşil Sol Parti". Court of Cassation (in Turkish). Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Turkey". 30 October 2023.
  3. ^ "Stop the leaders of the Turkish Green Party from being jailed under false charges". European Greens. Archived from the original on 2023-05-23. Retrieved 2020-03-26.
  4. ^ "Umudun siyasetini birlikte büyütmek için" (PDF). yesilsolparti.org (in Turkish). September 2021. Retrieved 2023-09-30.
  5. ^ "Turkish libertarian: Pro-Kurdish HDP in Turkey should be like Syriza in Greece". rudaw.net. 1 January 1970. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
  6. ^ "Turkey's Green Party recognizes Armenian Genocide | ARMENPRESS Armenian News Agency". Armenpress.am. Retrieved April 23, 2015.