DEM Party, MHP meet to discuss Turkey-PKK peace process

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A delegation from Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) met with the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) on Monday to discuss jailed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan’s call for disarmament and efforts for a peace process.

“Today, we held a meeting with the Nationalist Movement Party [MHP] regarding the call made by Mr. Abdullah Ocalan and the evolving process. We will share our detailed statement with you, the esteemed members of the press, later today after we have completed all our meetings,” DEM Party co-chair Tulay Hatimogullari told reporters.

In February, jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan called on the group he founded to lay down arms and dissolve itself after more than four decades of war with Turkey. His statement was issued amid renewed peace efforts to end a conflict that broke out in 1984, spilled over international borders, and claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people.

The PKK said it accepted Ocalan’s call for peace and declared a unilateral ceasefire, but on Saturday it accused Turkey of continuing to carry out attacks. Hatimogullari added that MHP leader Devlet Bahceli, who initiated the peace talks between Ankara and the PKK, was unable to join the meeting due to health conditions, and wished him a speedy recovery. 

The MHP leader, who is known for his nationalist remarks and is Erdogan’s main ally in government, also stressed that the PKK must dissolve unconditionally.

Semih Yalcin, MHP deputy chairman and lawmaker for Istanbul, hailed the meeting as a “very useful” one.

On Saturday, DEM Party lawmaker Pervin Buldan said in an interview with Turkish Haber Medya that they will meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after the Eid holiday at the end of March. She said they would expect concrete steps from the government.

Founded in 1978, the PKK initially called for the establishment of an independent Kurdistan but now calls for autonomy. The group is designated a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies.