26/01/2026 | 18:08:42 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) Dear Colleagues, The recent wave of detentions in Türkiye, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İMAMOĞLU, the presidential candidate of our party, marks a critical turning point for our country’s democracy. Mayors of Adana, Antalya, district mayors across Istanbul have also been detained, based on politically motivated allegations. Let us be honest: this is a civilian coup carried out through courtrooms. Recep Tayyip ERDOĞAN's regime is now... 03/10/2025 | 10:51:36 Thank you. I would like to warmly thank to Mr Edmunds CEPURĪTIS for his excellent report. As youth rapporteur in the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination, I must emphasise that sexual violence and abuse and target of children, including boys, also takes place online through the Internet and social media. As in all our work, including in its youth dimension, we need to look at the circumstances in which men and boys, in all diversity, are faced with sexual violence. And I welcome the... 02/10/2025 | 20:25:10 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) Dear Colleagues, We are told that political parties are the pillars of democracy. Yet across Europe and beyond these pillars are cracking under the weight of distrust, exclusion, and the corrosive influence of money in politics. Parties should be vehicles for collective emancipation, for giving voice to the silenced, the marginalized, and the oppressed. Instead, they often dominated by political elites, interests of big business, or wealthy... 01/10/2025 | 16:55:44 Thank you, Madam President, And I also would like to thank the rapporteur for his vital report. Indeed, freedom of speech for young people and youth movements is not only a right; it is the lifeblood of democracy and the safeguard of rights and the engine of civic participation. While welcoming the attention given to youth activism, I must draw special attention to the situation in Türkiye. Young people in Türkiye are both the brightest hope and the heaviest burden of our democracy, of... 30/09/2025 | 11:27:58 Thank you. Dear Colleagues, Today in Türkiye, democracy has been reduced to a shell of its true meaning. There are elections, but no genuine public will. There are courts, but no justice. There is a parliament, but little voice of the people. Because without the rule of law, elections become empty rituals, and democracy remains an illusion on paper. We know this all too well. Elected mayors, Istanbul, Adana, Antalya, chosen by millions of votes, have been unlawfully removed and replaced by... 26/06/2025 | 16:55:03 Thank you, Madam President. I would like to thank Ms Maryna BARDINA for her excellent report and for highlighting the urgent need to make our parliaments truly inclusive, also for those of us who fight to be heard and listened to in political spaces. As Youth Rapporteur, I must emphasise that age is still one of the biggest barriers to political participation. In most parliaments across Europe, youth representation remains symbolic at best. Too often, young people are treated as future... 26/06/2025 | 15:47:50 Thank you, Mister President, Dear colleagues, I am pleased to speak today on a matter of urgency and principle: the state of women’s rights in Europe. Europe has claimed for decades its leadership in human rights, equality and democracy. Yet for millions of women, rights remain uneven, conditional and vulnerable to political winds. Yes, we’ve seen progress in access to education, health and legal protections. But let’s be clear: progress is not permanent. From wage inequality to institutional... 25/06/2025 | 17:11:09 Dear colleagues, the humanitarian emergency we have witnessed in Gaza has reached unimaginable levels. More than 55 000 people have been killed, 130 000 people have been injured. These are devastating facts to which we unfortunately have become accustomed. We check the latest numbers, underline the grave situation, express our wish for ceasefire, as well as unhindered humanitarian aid. We also say that hostages should be released. But we have to admit that we fail time and time again to take... 11/04/2025 | 10:12:16 Dear Mister President. On 19 March, the mayor of Istanbul and the presidential candidate of 15.5 million Turks, Ekrem İMAMOĞLU, was detained on politically motivated charges. In response, people claimed their democratic rights through peaceful protests all around the country. University students, mostly young people, are the main voice of opposition and the key part of this democratic resistance. These demonstrations, however, are not solely a reaction to recent political developments. These... 09/04/2025 | 17:03:02 Thank you, Mister President. The issues are a matter of the country. A matter of justice, democracy, freedom, rights and the rule of law. The issue of the future of the country. The man who addressed the nation with this statement is currently under arrest. That man is the duly elected Mayor of Istanbul, chosen by the people of this city of 16 million. That man is also a presidential candidate of our party. That man is Ekrem İMAMOĞLU. He earned that mandate by defeating the ruling party not...