[2] In the past, several pro Kurdish parties have been banned,[3] and pro-Kurdish politicians often face legal prosecution and prison terms.
The Ministry of the Interior has dismissed dozens of elected HDP mayors since the Municipal Elections held in March 2019,[4][5] while more than hundred politicians are threatened with life sentences due to the Kobane protests which supported the Kurdish population in Kobanî during the Siege of Kobanî led by the Islamic State (IS).
[6][5] The HDP was accused of being a terrorist organization by several representatives of the Turkish Government and its closure was demanded by the MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli.
[14] The indictment also called for a five-year ban for 687 HDP politicians to be involved in political activities, amongst them all party chairs since its existence.
[20] The defense team condemned the fact that investigations are used as evidence for a political ban of 451 HDP politicians by the prosecution and maintained the view that for what the party is mainly accused of, are their efforts for the solution of the Kurdish Turkish conflict during the peace process between 2013 and 2015.
The case has largely been closed since March 2021, the events are widely viewed in the context of Erdogan's poor grip on power notably in the Kurdish majority regions of Turkey.
[5] Making reference to the revelations about government corruption by crime boss Sedat Peker, the HDP accused the AKP of wanting to "update its power" with the closure case.