Erdogan hails ‘terror-free Turkiye’ as PKK destroys arms

ISTANBUL/SULAIMANIYAH: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hailed a move by Kurdish PKK militants to begin destroying their weapons Friday as a key step on the path to a ‘terror-free Turkiye’.

“I hope the important step taken today on our path to a terror-free Turkiye will bring blessing,” state news agency Anadolu quoted him as saying. “May God grant us success in reaching our goals for the security of our nation… and the establishment of lasting peace in our region.”

MILITANTS WANT TO ENTER DEMOCRATIC POLITICS

Kurdish PKK militants want to return to Turkiye and enter democratic politics, one of the group’s joint leaders told AFP on Friday after the fighters began destroying their arms at a ceremony in Iraq.

In an interview with AFP, Bese Hozat, one of the Kurdish militant group’s two top leaders, also warned the fragile peace process risked being derailed if Ankara failed to free its jailed founder Abdullah Ocalan.

And she said Turkiye needed to enact urgent legal reforms to allow PKK fighters to return home without fear of prosecution or death after ending their decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state.

“The Turkish state needs to grant us the right to enter democratic politics.. We are ready and willing to go to Turkiye to engage in democratic politics,” she said.

“A comprehensive decision has been made to abandon the armed struggle and to continue the struggle for democracy through lawful political means and legal grounds,” she said.

RELEASE OCALAN

But for the PKK’s metamorphosis from armed struggle to democratic politics to be a success, she continued, it was essential for Turkiye to release Ocalan — known to his followers as “Apo” (uncle).

He has been serving a life sentence in solitary confinement on the prison island of Imrali near Istanbul since 1999.

“Ensuring leader Apo’s physical freedom legally, via legal guarantees, is essential… he should be able to freely lead and manage this process. This is our primary condition and demand,” she said.

“Without this development, it is highly unlikely that the process will continue successfully.”

The PKK has repeatedly demanded Ocalan be released to lead the process, although the 76-year-old had earlier this week insisted his own freedom was not important.

And she said it was essential for Turkiye to push through “comprehensive and serious legal reforms” to allow PKK militants to return home without fear of prosecution or reprisals.

LEGAL INTEGRATION

“If Turkiye takes concrete steps, enacts laws and implements radical legal reforms.. we will go to Turkiye and engage in politics,” she said.

“If there is no legal constitutional arrangements, we will either end up in prison or being killed.”

The move to disband and decommission the PKK’s weapons was part of a broader five-stage process towards sustainable peace, a senior Turkish official said, speaking anonymously.

The following steps would involve the legal reintegration of former fighters into society, the establishment of mechanisms for their lawful return and for justice, ensuring accountability and stability.