The imprisoned founder of the PKK, Abdullah Öcalan, affirmed that the rapprochement between Turks and Kurds was a “historic responsibility”, saying he was “determined” to participate in the peace process launched in Turkey, the pro-Kurdish Turkish party DEM said on Sunday after visiting him the day before in prison.
Two deputies from the DEM (Party of People’s Equality and Democracy) spoke on Saturday with the leader of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party), imprisoned for life on an island off the coast of Istanbul.
A first visit in ten years: the DEM’s predecessor, the HDP (People’s Democratic Party), last saw him in April 2015.
The government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan approved the DEM’s request on Friday to visit the 75-year-old Kurdish leader. The latter has been detained for 25 years on the Turkish prison island of Imrali.
The PKK, a Kurdish separatist organization, in armed struggle for decades against Turkish central power, is classified as a “terrorist” organization by Turkey as well as by the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom.
Saturday’s visit became possible after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s nationalist ally, the leader of the ultranationalist MHP (Nationalist Action Party), Devlet Bahceli, invited Abdullah Öcalan to come to Parliament to renounce the ” terrorism” and disband the militant group.
“I have the competence and determination to make a positive contribution to the new paradigm launched by Mr. Bahceli and Mr. Erdogan,” said Abdullah Öcalan according to the DEM press release.
He also said, according to the same source, that the delegation which visited him would share its approach with the State and political circles. “In light of this, I am prepared to take the necessary action and make this appeal.”
– “historic opportunity” –
DEM co-president Tuncer Bakirhan sees in Öcalan’s quoted remarks “a historic opportunity to build a common future”, in a message posted on X.
“We are on the eve of a potential democratic transformation in Turkey and in the region. Now is the time for courage (…) for an honorable peace,” he declared.
The idea launched by Mr Bahceli, fiercely hostile to the PKK, has sparked public debate since October, with Erdogan hailing it as a “historic window of opportunity”.
But a terrorist attack perpetrated in October against a Turkish defense company in Ankara which left 5 dead and claimed by PKK militants dampened hopes.
Turkey then launched strikes against Kurdish militants in Iraq and Syria.
The PKK has led an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984, killing tens of thousands.
In 2015, the peace process between the PKK and the Turkish state collapsed, triggering violence particularly in the southeast of the predominantly Kurdish country.
“Strengthening Turkish-Kurdish brotherhood is not only a historic responsibility but also an emergency for all people,” said the Kurdish leader, according to the statement released by the DEM.
Abdullah Öcalan declared that all these efforts “will bring the country to the level it deserves” and will constitute a “very valuable guide for democratic transformation”, according to the same press release.
– “It’s time for peace” –
“The time has come for peace, democracy and brotherhood for Turkey and the region,” declared the founder of the PKK.
As Turkey’s political class began a process toward a negotiated political solution to the bloody conflict with the PKK, Islamist rebels overthrew strongman Bashar al-Assad in Syria.
Turkey now hopes that Syria’s new leaders will address the issue of Kurdish forces in the country, which Ankara considers a terrorist group affiliated with the PKK.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in a telephone call to his American counterpart Antony Blinken on Saturday that Kurdish fighters “cannot be allowed to take refuge in Syria”, according to the ministry spokesperson.
Abdullah Öcalan estimated, according to the DEM press release, that developments in Syria have shown that external interference will only complicate the problems and that a solution can no longer be postponed.
