Tuncer Bakrkhan: Football is one of Turkey's black boxes

According to Kurdistan Press, Tuncer Bakrkhan, co-chair of the People's Equality and Democracy Party (Dem Party), commented on the recent developments in Turkish football, the attacks against Amedspor, the state of the national team, economic problems, and the change of party of some deputies and mayors in an interview with Ilke TV.

Referring to the operations carried out against the Central Referees' Board and the discussions related to refereeing decisions, Bakrkhan said that football in Turkey has never been able to remain just football.

He added: "A penalty is no longer a penalty; a decision is not a decision, and a punishment is not a punishment.Football has become one of Turkey’s black boxes.”

The Dem Party co-chair claimed that the Turkish Football Federation and other institutions related to this field are not run by experts and that political influence and economic interests have influenced their decision-making.

Referring to some refereeing decisions, he added: “The football player did not even touch the opponent, but the referee awarded a penalty; goals are disallowed and red cards are simply shown. There is also serious scope for profiteering in this field.”

According to Bakrkhan, it is difficult to achieve “clean football” without democratizing the country’s structures, and the management of institutions such as the Football Federation and the Central Referees Board should be entrusted to people who are not “racist, rent-seeking and one-sided” and who respect Turkey’s social diversity.Criticism of the Turkish national team

Bekir Khan described the situation of the Turkish national football team as “disastrous” and said that the criteria for selecting players and forming teams are not transparent.

Referring to what he called discrimination against teams from the Kurdish regions of Turkey, he said: “The regional teams are the main victims of this situation. In many competitions, referees make decisions based on taste; however, the performance of all referees cannot be evaluated equally.”

The co-chair of the Dem Party also claimed that some Kurdish footballers who have had successful performances in Europe are not invited to the Turkish national team simply because of their Kurdish identity or listening to Kurdish music.

He said: “There are players who play a decisive role in the German national team, but despite declaring their readiness, they are not even invited to the Turkish national team because of their Kurdish identity.This exclusion from football spills over into school, the economy, and other areas of social life.»

Why is Amedspor threatened in every away match?

In another part of his speech, Bakrkhan addressed the attacks and threatening slogans against Amedspor in away matches and criticized the silence of the Turkish Football Federation and the Central Board of Referees: “Is Amedspor a team belonging to this region or a team of a country that is at war with Turkey? Why is it booed and threatened in every away match? Why do they show yellow bags? Where are the Central Board of Referees and the Turkish Football Federation? Is there greater discrimination and division than this?”

Bakrkhan emphasized that Turkey’s linguistic and cultural diversity should also be recognized in stadiums: “In Hatay, you may hear Arabic slogans, in this region, people say a few sentences in Kurdish, and in the Black Sea, slogans may be given in the language of the people of that region.All institutions must behave in accordance with this diversity.”

Referring to his attendance at several Amedspor matches in Diyarbakir, Bakrkhan said the club has an inclusive and hospitable approach to hosting rival teams. “Until there is peace in football, there will be no peace in Turkey; until there is peace in sports, there will be no peace in Turkey,” he added.

A purge is needed in all areas

Putting together the problems of football, the economy, the stock market and investment funds, Bakrkhan said Turkey needs a “real purge” in all these areas.

He also criticized the increase in party switching among members of parliament and mayors, saying: “In the past, anyone who wanted to change their party was ashamed; but now there is no shame left. The person who sits on our right today will sit on our left the next day."This is the first time I've encountered such a situation and I'm surprised by it."