ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The prolonged conflict between Turkey and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has reached a point where negotiations are unavoidable, stated veteran Kurdish politician Mala Bakhtiar, describing Abdullah Ocalan’s recent call for the PKK to abandon armed struggle as a rare opportunity for peace.
“Very favorable conditions” have arisen for peace between Turkey and the PKK, Bakhtiar said during a program aired on Rudaw and presented by Ranj Sangawi and Dilbixwin Dara, attributing Ocalan’s message to his understanding of “the essence of democracy.”
Ocalan’s message - delivered by Turkey’s main pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) on Thursday - urged the PKK to disarm and disband. The move sparked hope for an end to the four-decade-old conflict between Turkey and the PKK, which has claimed more than 40,000 lives
Bakhtiar, a former senior member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), noted that despite Turkey using the full power of its military, “it has not been able to defeat the PKK.” Meanwhile, the PKK “has mobilized the Kurdish people’s capabilities, both in the north [southeastern Turkey] and across other parts of [Greater] Kurdistan as well,” he explained.
Kurds believe Greater Kurdistan refers to the historical region traditionally inhabited by the Kurdish people, spanning parts of Iraq, Iran, Turkey, and Syria.
According to Bakhtiar, the PKK has managed to “transform [members of the Kurdish community] into guerrilla fighters” and was “heroic and fought hard,” but failed to “secure a political strategy to ensure the future of Kurdistan.”
The PKK on Sunday declared a unilateral sanction, effectively committing to a halt in fighting with Turkey. Bakhtiar described the PKK's “commitment to Ocalan's message” as “worthy of respect,” adding that the current situation “is generally favorable” and has potential “positive impacts on west Kurdistan [northeast Syria’s Rojava] as well.”
Touching on past interactions with Ocalan, Bakhtiar recalled a 1993 meeting with the PKK leader in Damascus, where he advised Ocalan to shift focus toward civil efforts instead of armed struggle, believing that Turkey would respond by “kindly engaging in a democratic process.” However, Bakhtiar noted that the PKK leadership at that time had a different view.
On Monday, the DEM Party reported that Devlet Bahceli, the leader of Turkey’s ultranationalist Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), contacted the former co-chair of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), Selahattin Demirtas, who has been jailed in Turkey since 2016. He is currently serving a 42-year sentence on terror-related charges.
Bakhtiar welcomed Bahceli’s outreach, seeing it as a shift in attitude towards Kurds, especially as it followed the prominent Turkish politician’s suggestion last year, that Ocalan “addresses the Turkish parliament and resolve the armed group’s [PKK’s] issue.”
For his part, Demirtas on Friday commended all of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, PKK leader Ocalan, and MHP leader Bahceli for their roles in advancing peace efforts between Ankara and the PKK.
Kurdish grievances
Pointing to the historic plight of Kurds who have historically “been oppressed in negotiations,” Bakhtiar said that Demirtas and another veteran Kurdish politician, Ahmet Turk, were only given two choices. They were told, “You either enter the government or you go to prison, you do not have a third option,” said Bakhtiar.
Turk, who was elected as a co-mayor for Mardin in southeast Turkey in March 2024, was sentenced to ten years in prison over his alleged involvement in 2014 protests in Turkey against government policies, corruption, and democratic backsliding.
Khalil Ataj, a former PKK leadership member who was close to Ocalan, was a co-guest with Bakhtiar on the same program. He revealed that while Ocalan’s Thursday message has been praised as historic, it is not the first of its kind.
"Long before [this message], the PKK was ready for peace. Since 1993, Ocalan has been sending messages to Turkey that he is ready for peace," Ataj said.
The former PKK leadership member additionally confirmed that Ocalan had signalled openness to peace in 1997, when he received a letter from then-Turkish prime minister Necmettin Erbakan, who reached out to Ocalan in an attempt to de-escalate the conflict and open channels for negotiations with the PKK.
Describing Ocalan’s latest message as a “historic turning point,” Ataj stressed the importance of having an international and social climate that is conducive to peace between Turkey and the PKK, especially since the latter was only formed due to the denial of the Kurdish identity in Turkey, he elaborated.
The analysts’ take
The program additionally featured analysts who shared their perspectives on the latest developments on the Kurdish arena.
Director of Rudaw Research Center, Ziryan Rojhelati, described Ocalan’s message as a landmark and emphasized that “the prevalent international and social circumstances are suitable for establishing peace in northern Kurdistan [Bakur, southeastern Turkey].” He added that the Kurdish community in Turkey is deeply integrated into Turkish society and that Ocalan’s proposals align with their needs.
Rojhelati predicted that the PKK would begin to disarm following an upcoming congress, and that some PKK members who were not involved in fighting could be released in coming months, pending amendments to Turkey’s anti-terror law and penal code. “Some laws may be amended to allow the release of certain PKK members from prison, while others may be relocated to the Kurdistan Region or Scandinavian countries," he explained.
The senior researcher additionally anticipated that Ocalan might monitor the upcoming PKK congress from his secluded prison on Imrali Island, northwest of Turkey, and that Demirtas might be released amid the peace process.
Of note, the PKK on Saturday stated that it is ready to hold a congress, as demanded by Ocalan in his Thursday letter, but said that Ocalan has to lead the meeting in person. The latter is a precondition that PKK commanders on the ground had set weeks earlier.
Meanwhile, writer and political analyst Sardar Aziz suggested that Turkey’s constitution be amended to better address the Kurdish issue, noting that "Ocalan's letter is not just for the PKK, but part of a broader message to Turkey."
DEM Party representative in the Kurdistan Region, Sitki Vakar, emphasized that the PKK is open to any peace effort in northern Kurdistan (Bakur, southeastern Turkey). "We also call for peace” and urge “changing some laws” to solve “most of the problems” faced by Kurds in Turkey, Vakar noted, stressing that “our demand is that Mr. Ocalan be released.. for the peace process to succeed.”
However, writer and analyst Mustafa Shafiq expressed doubt over the content of Ocalan’s letter stating, "I think only parts of Ocalan’s letter were selected and combined together.” He criticized Turkey for its unclear stance, stating, "Turkey has not yet decided to stop the fighting, although Erdogan himself is overseeing the Kurdish issue.”
