The Fate of Turkey’s Democracy Lies With the Kurds

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey—This past Sunday, four Kurdish candidates running for office in Turkey’s June 24 elections rolled into the rural town of Hani to rally their supporters. The candidates, along with their campaign team, had been speaking from atop their bus to a crowd of some 150 people for about 10 minutes before a plain-clothes policeman ordered them to leave. The candidates, members of the minority-focused, left-leaning Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), climbed down from the bus and began arguing with the policeman. Suddenly, six armored vehicles rolled in. Roughly 30 security personnel—some wearing ski masks and all carrying automatic rifles—surrounded the rally. Following a tense standoff, the campaigners were allowed to stay.But now, they were encircled by soldiers as a surveillance drone hovered overhead and a police officer videotaped the event. A turret gun on a nearby armored car rotated, occasionally stopping when it landed on the crowd. “We’ve been to many towns