The PKK terrorist group's leader Abdullah Öcalan appeared in a video released on Wednesday and reaffirmed the group’s commitment to dissolution. It is the first video message of Öcalan who serves a life sentence in an island prison off the coast of Istanbul. It came ahead of an anticipated ceremony of PKK members to lay down arms.
The message is another milestone in the terror-free Türkiye initiative launched last year by government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). The initiative started with a call to Öcalan to urge its group to abandon arms. Öcalan consented and made the call in February through a written message. In his video message shot in June, Öcalan said a political framework was key to the success of the initiative.
Öcalan urged Parliament to set up a commission to oversee disarmament and manage a broader peace process.
He said the PKK had ended its separatist agenda, describing the shift as a "historic gain." "The overall process of voluntary disarmament and the comprehensive commission envisioned to be established ... by the Turkish Grand National Assembly (Parliament) are crucial. Care and sensitivity are essential," Öcalan said.
"The details of disarmament will be determined and implemented swiftly ... Establishing a disarmament mechanism will advance the process," he also said.
"This represents a voluntary transition from the phase of armed conflict to the phase of democratic politics and law," he said, stressing that the peace process had reached a "historic" point.
He underlined that the PKK abandoned its goal of establishing a “nation-state” and thus “ceased its existence.”
“The point we arrived at (the initiative) is historic and valuable. It is the result of talks I held here in Imralı,” Öcalan said in his message, referring to his meetings with a delegation of lawmakers from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), which relayed Öcalan's messages to the government and public.
Öcalan stated that new steps were needed in the initiative. He said the PKK’s raison d’etre expired, but it has to adopt a “democratic politics” strategy at the current stage. “Voluntary disarmament and a comprehensive work by a planned committee at Parliament are essential now. I believe steps will not be in vain and acknowledge the sincerity in the process,” he said.
Öcalan said the establishment of a disarmament mechanism would advance the process. “This is a voluntary transition from armed fighting to democratic politics,” he said. He added that the DEM Party and other parties would do what they could for the initiative to conclude successfully. He also spoke about his own situation and said it did not matter whether he was freed or not, referring to the PKK’s call for the release of Öcalan or easing his prison conditions. “I have faith in politics and social peace, not in arms. I call you to do the same,” he said in his address to the PKK.
The terrorist group’s leader also pointed out the urgency of the initiative in light of “recent developments in the region,” referring to conflicts in the region, including between Israel and Iran, and Israel’s aggression toward Gaza. His comments echoed similar remarks of the terror-free Türkiye initiative architect Devlet Bahçeli, who has called the necessity of forming a “homefront” in Türkiye in the face of Israel’s expansionist policies. Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, often highlight that Israel may set its sights on Türkiye as part of its expansionist aggression.
