That day,  they first noticed that  MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli was staring at them… Just as one of them  said  , “He’s sending greetings,” they saw Bahçeli suddenly appear next to them and extend his hand.

Tuncer Bakırhan  said ,  “We were not expecting it at all, we were surprised of course.”

They are pleased…

The hand that was extended to them and   the discussions surrounding  the ‘Kurdish issue’ that started afterwards… Bahçeli ‘s words…  President Tayyip Erdoğan ‘s support for him on this issue… And  Özgür Özel,  the leader of the CHP, whom they constantly refer to as the  ‘first party’, embracing the process instead of opposing it…

DEM co-chairs find this development important as a whole…

Tülay Hatimoğulları  and  Tuncer Bakırhan …

What I heard at the DEM press conference held in Taksim, Istanbul, makes me think that they interpreted the events of the last week as if we were in a new process.

It’s not like they were caught unaware by the developments…

The rapid change the world is going through, the reflection of that change in the region including Turkey with bloody conflicts, the economic hardships caused by the policies followed by the government, the poverty that the people are being reduced to, already make one think that the government will look for new ways out…

When they compare the conditions of the ‘resolution process’ period between 2013 and 2015   with today’s conditions, they see that Turkey is more problematic in the international arena and the government is weaker than it was then.

“Turkey is under greater threat than ever,”  said  Bakırhan .

The country’s biggest problem,  the ‘Kurdish problem’,  could be an opportunity to change this picture.  “Turks should see the Kurds as relatives, not enemies,”  he said.

It was he who reminded that the existence of the ‘Kurdish problem’ has cost the country at least three trillion dollars to date.

They believe that a solution will become easier in a more democratic Turkey.

What they want   is to live as citizens with equal rights in a Turkey that will bring prosperity to 85 million people, united around the concepts of ‘Democratic Republic’  and  ‘Democratic Nation’ .

During the meeting, which lasted three hours, the co-chairs of DEM spoke in a tone that was in line with the expectation that they  should be the party of Turkey  .

Hatimioğulları repeated many times that if there is going to be a new process initiative, it   should start with road cleaning .

Implementation of the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and the Constitutional Court (AYM)…

Lifting isolation of prisoners, which is also against the constitution…

Providing women  with the conditions in the Istanbul Convention that will make them safer…

 They expect these and similar improvements through ‘road cleaning’ .

The “lifting of isolation” is meant to provide  Abdullah Öcalan ,  who has not been allowed to see anyone for 43 months  , with the opportunity to meet with his relatives and lawyers. Not only Şanlıurfa MP nephew Ömer Öcalan , but also other members of DEM had applied to the Ministry of Justice to meet with him; the applications remained unanswered…

They want the guns to fall silent and the conflicting environment to end, but they also reminded us that they are not the addressees of this…   They summarized how the process will work as “Those in conflict speak, democratic forces contribute” …

“Devlet Bahçeli reminded us that there are three different interlocutors in his speech. In what is expected from the PKK, the interlocutors are naturally İmralı and Kandil… The political interlocutor is us,” said  Bakırhan .

Of course, Parliament will also need to step in to make the necessary arrangements.

Hatimioğulları said that there may be a need for an initiative similar to the Peace Assembly  formed  years ago  under the leadership of Yaşar Kemal  and  Hrant Dink , and that a Peace Commission could be established  in the Turkish Grand National Assembly to which all political parties would give representatives   .

Meanwhile,  we learned from Bakırhan that they do not agree with the determination that the PYD structure on the Syrian side of the border poses a threat to Turkey. He said,  “Let it be proven that the PYD is a threat, and we will stand against it  .” They are of the opinion that the final situation in Syria should be decided by the Syrian people…

“Turkey can act as arbitrator on that issue,”  said  Bakırhan .

It is being talked about as if a new  “resolution process”  has come to Turkey’s agenda, but on the other hand, they are having difficulty saying that this is really the case. They believe that if there is sincerity, the process will be successful this time, and for this reason, they hope that well-intentioned steps can be taken.

The co-chairs,  Hatimoğulları  and  Bakırhan , had gone to Edirne and  met with Selahattin Demirtaş on the day they met with us . They said several times during their conversation that their views   were shared by Demirtaş .

I left the Elite World Hotel in Taksim, Istanbul  , with the conviction that the DEM administration   had a strong hope that the hand extended to them by Devlet Bahçeli could turn into a process.