ISTANBUL (Agos)—Turkey’s Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair, Figen Yüksekdağ, during a group meeting, discussed the Armenian Genocide. Yüksekdağ said, “On 101st anniversary of the genocide, we apologize to Armenian people. We apologize to Aunt Elizabeth, to Uncle Krikor. We apologize to our friends, comrade Garo and to our sister Roza.”

Yüksekdağ started the meeting by saying, “I would like to begin by commemorating the Armenians, Syriac and Chaldean people who were exiled and killed 101 years ago.”

She continued by saying “The mentality that led to the genocide avoids recognition today. However, recognition doesn’t demean a state, it only relieves pain. These lands will eventually spill out the bloodshed, regardless of your [the Turkish governments’] wishes. Our history is a history of massacres. Recognizing the massacres is a historical responsibility.”

“The ones who withhold their apologies have the same mentality. They use “Armenian” as an insult. This means that the genocidal mentality is still alive. We apologize to Armenian people. As I said, the mentality that led to death and destruction in the past is still active today.”