Socialist International Publishes Formal Statement Backing Özel; Opposition Solidarity Hardens

The Socialist International formally published its statement backing ousted CHP leader Özgür Özel on May 29, 2026, confirming the May 27 Ethics Committee vote result and urging Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu — installed as CHP interim chair by court order — to call an immediate extraordinary congress. The SI statement condemned the court ruling as 'a clear interference in the internal democratic life of a member party' and called on the Turkish government to respect the rule of law and democratic pluralism. The publication gave Özel's faction important international legitimacy and put pressure on Kılıçdaroğlu, whose legitimacy was recognized domestically by the court but internationally by nobody. European Parliament members from the Party of European Socialists (PES) — the SI's European affiliate — issued parallel statements backing Özel, raising the prospect of formal PES action against Turkey's democratic trajectory at the EU level.