Öcalan Urges PKK Congress to Decide Quitting Arms, Introduces 10 Measures
The delegation to the resolution of Kurdish issue made a statement along with Vice Prime Minister and Interior Minister. It was announced that PKK leader appealed to a congress that will decide on leaving arms.
Following a meeting in PM’s Office in Istanbul, the delegation to the resolution of Kurdish issue along with Turkish ministers made a statement informing that PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan called for a PKK congress in spring to decide on quitting arms.
Took place on Saturday, the meeting was attended by Vice Prime Minister Yalçın Akdoğan, Justice and Development Party (AKP) Group Interim Chairman Mahir Ünal and Interior Minister Efkan Ala from the Turkish government and Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) deputies Sırrı Süreyya Önder, Pervin Buldan and İdris Baluken from the Kurdish delegations.
Öcalan’s statement read by Sırrı Süreyya Önder emphasized that Turkey was “in the verge of a historical decision moment in the resolution process”. Emphasizing on the non-violence, it continued that the process came to a serious and binding step even though there has been occasional suspensions and divisions.
“As we are moving this conflict period of 30 years towards permanent peace, our basic goal is to bring the matter to a democratic peace. I am inviting PKK to gather an extraordinary congress during the months of spring in order to make a strategic and historical decision on the basis of quitting armed struggle within the principles where minimum necessities are met. This invitation is a historical declaration of intent towards leaving the armed struggle to democratic politics,” the statement cited.
Öcalan’s 10 measures to the resolution
In his statement, Öcalan also introduced 10 measures including a new constitution that would “internalize the resolution of democratic steps and transformations.
* Definition of democratic politics and its contents
* Definition of democratic politics’ national and local dimensions
* Legal and democratic guarantees of free citizenship
* Relation of democratic politics to the state and society
* Socio-economical dimensions of resolution process
* Reevaluation of the relationship between democracy and security towards protecting public order and freedoms within the resolution process
* Legal resolutions and guarantees of issues related to women, culture and ecology
* Establishing of a pluralist and democratic understanding towards the concept and definition of identity as well as its definition-making
* Definition of democratic republic, common homeland and nation within democratic criteria as well as restoration of legal and constitutional guarantees inside a pluralist and democratic system
* A new constitution that will aim to internalize all these democratic steps and transformations
Vice PM: It will speed up democratic growth
Following Öcalan’s statement, Vice PM Akdoğan said that they found the call important “towards the realization of total non-action”.
He also added that all sides of the society, NGO and political parties must make an effort to contribute to the peace process.
“The elimination of arms will speed up the democratic growth,” he said. (YY/BM)
* Click here to read the article in Turkish.