“All [civil society organizations] in Diyarbakır have voiced their views in favor of our team’s continuation of its campaign in the league. It falls to us is to respect this will despite our previous announcement,” said Sümer Çetin, the team’s chairman.
Çetin had announced on Sunday that his team would boycott their match against Galatasaray this weekend. The team made the decision in reaction to racist slogans directed at them by Gaziantepspor fans during a soccer match accusing Diyarbakırspor of supporting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
A large number of civil society groups in the city, however, voiced their disapproval of the decision, saying Diyarbakırspor should continue its adventure in the league.
“We expect the Turkish Soccer Federation [TFF] to do what is necessary against racist, ugly and bad slogans,” Sümer added.
The team had announced its withdrawal from the league in late September after the extreme level of intolerance they experienced during a match at Bursaspor. The host team’s fans were hostile toward Diyarbakırspor players and fans, accusing them of being “separatists.”
Sümer also extended his thanks to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and President Abdullah Gül for the sensitivity they showed in Diyarbakırspor’s experiences with racism on soccer pitches. “We invite them to our match against Galatasaray,” he added.
