Turkey’s pro-Kurdish party seeks meeting with jailed PKK leader after new call from far-right politician

The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) in Turkey has applied to the Justice Ministry for permission to meet with the jailed leader of an outlawed Kurdish militant group, following a renewed call from a far-right politician for dialogue with him to resolve terrorism concerns, the Deutsche Welle Turkish edition reported.

DEM Party Co-chairpersons Tülay Hatimoğulları and Tuncer Bakırhan filed their application with the Justice Ministry on Tuesday to request a meeting with Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan, who is imprisoned on İmralı Island in the Sea of Marmara.

The party’s group deputy chair, Gülistan Koçyiğit, announced the development on X, saying that her party is ready to contribute in every way to a democratic solution of the Kurdish conflict and the democratization of Turkey.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies, has been waging a bloody war in Turkey’s southeast since 1984. Tens of thousands of people have been killed in the conflict.

The move came after far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli renewed his proposal for Öcalan to urge his outlawed group to lay down its arms at a meeting of the DEM Party in Parliament, saying that an appearance at the DEM Party meeting must happen without further delay.

“We must join forces to remove terrorism from our agenda. We stand firmly behind what we said at the Oct. 22 group meeting. The meeting between İmralı [Öcalan] and the DEM Party group should not be delayed,” the MHP leader said during a speech at his party’s group meeting earlier on Tuesday.

Bahçeli, a key ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, surprised many when he suggested in October that if Öcalan’s “isolation” were lifted, he could appear at the party group meeting of the DEM Party and declare the dissolution of the PKK, signaling an end to decades of violence.

The “isolation” of Öcalan, who has been jailed in a high-security prison on İmralı Island since 1999, refers to his inability to speak with his lawyers for years. He is serving an aggravated life sentence.

Bahçeli also suggested that if Öcalan takes this step, there could be legislative action to pave the way for his possible release.

Erdoğan backed Bahçeli’s call, saying that a “historic opportunity” to resolve the Kurdish issue should not be missed.

The “Kurdish issue,” a term prevalent in Turkey’s public discourse, refers to the demand for equal rights by the country’s Kurdish population and their struggle for recognition.

Bakırhan echoed a similar view to that of Bahçeli and told reporters earlier on Tuesday that the DEM Party would like to play a role in a possible peace process between the government and the PKK.

“We, as the DEM Party, are curious about what the parties want. As Bahçeli said, a DEM Party-İmralı [Öcalan] meeting would be very beneficial. We would like to hear what Mr. Öcalan has to say and what he thinks,” Bakırhan said.

The leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Özgür Özel, responded cautiously to Bahçeli’s call. He said that his party is open to participating in a settlement process that includes all parties, is transparent and focuses on social reconciliation.

However, Özel added that the CHP will never support any action that could offend the families of soldiers and others who have been killed or injured in the fight against the PKK.

Meanwhile, Ahmet Türk, one of the three mayors from the DEM Party who were removed from their positions on alleged terrorism charges and replaced with trustees earlier this month, denied claims that he would meet with Bahçeli on Tuesday. His remarks came following a meeting with several DEM Party lawmakers in Parliament on Tuesday.

Türk won the vote in Mardin in March’s local election, when opposition candidates won in numerous towns and cities, including İstanbul.

Ankara appears to be reconsidering the resumption of dialogue with the PKK, after an almost 10-year freeze in peace efforts. The reason for the effort is to prevent Iran from reaching out to Kurdish fighters to destabilize Turkey during a possible escalation with Israel, according to a report by Al-Monitor last month.