NEWS CENTRE - In these days when the solution of the Kurdish question is being discussed, the AKP government is not taking any steps. PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan's statement in 2013 that "Without Turkish-Kurdish unity, no one can remain intact in the region” and his emphasis on democratisation show where he stands for a solution.  

 

After the ‘Global Freedom Movement’ launched on 10 October 2023 for the physical freedom of PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan and the political solution of the Kurdish problem, no news was received from İmralı for 43 months. On 23 October 2024, Abdullah Öcalan held a family meeting with his nephew Ömer Öcalan, who is also an MP of the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party).

 

Then on 28 December 2024, a delegation including DEM Party MPs Pervin Buldan and Sırrı Süreyya Önder held a meeting with Abdullah Öcalan. The delegation shared with the public the 7-point proposal outlined by Abdullah Öcalan for a solution. Afterwards, the delegation held talks with the political parties in the Parliament within the framework of Abdullah Öcalan's proposal. Following the meetings with the parties, the delegation went to İmralı Island once again on 22 January and met for the second time.

 

The talks in İmralı are being discussed as a main agenda in the public opinion. While these discussions are being held, once again the statements made by Abdullah Öcalan between 2013 and 2015 regarding the democratic solution of the Kurdish question have come to the agenda.

 

Abdullah Öcalan's remarks on the legal framework and Kurdish-Kurdish relations in the talks he held at that time are still up to date.

 

They will enact 50 laws if necessary

 

In the meeting on 24 June 2013, Abdullah Öcalan emphasised legality and said, "They want it to be fast. Then make the legal process open, right? Is it easy to solve a hundred year old problem? They will enact fifty laws if necessary. Why would legalisation be wrong? They say that the PKK will benefit from the law and become legitimised; yes, of course it will. Isn't our aim to end this illegality? I guess they take us for children. It won't work like this, the blind fight will continue, it would be a pity. They don't understand."

 

If there is no law, there is deception

 

Recalling the approaches of Turgut Özal and Necmettin Erbakan in the 1990s, Abdullah Öcalan said in the same interview: "Özal and Erbakan told me, 'We are ready for any legal measure.’ They said the same when we met with the army. I don't understand why this AKP insists so much. In the past, the state has been promising us legality. But if they say there can be no law, there is deception. This is the reason for my latest behaviour. Will those in Kandil go to the moon, Indonesia or Finland? Where will they go? If this happens, not a single one of them will lay down their arms."

 

Democracy requires understanding each other

 

In the interview in question, Abdullah Öcalan emphasised democracy, saying: "Democracy requires sharing, mutual respect and understanding each other. You already got 50 per cent, what more do you want? Don't be too hard on me. I did the right thing, we stopped the killing, what more can we do? Who are you, God? Don't be disrespectful, don't provoke them. Democracy is a good thing. Erdoğan can't establish his individual hegemony and the people won't accept it. I am astonished. They do not favour a democratic relationship:"

 

200 years of violence

 

Stating that a relationship based on violence has been built between Kurds and Turks for centuries, Abdullah Öcalan continued: "A social relationship based on violence, even up to genocide, has been built between Kurds and Turks for two hundred years. In the past, I used to look at the Armenian ruins and feel sad. Look, this is what our four thousand villages have become now. After 1990, JÎTEM and the like did great damage in the name of Turkishness. It turns out that for two hundred years violence has been built by proxy in the name of Turkishness and Kurdishness. The British played a big role in this."

 

Kurdistan without Kurds!

 

Abdullah Öcalan also states the following about the destruction in the 90s: "The destruction in the 90s was a similar storm. They wanted to create a Kurdistan without Kurds. They do not allow the Turks to make peace either. They want to make a fake peace, a peace that will lead us to conflict."

 

The solution to the Kurdish question is a Middle East democratic alliance

 

Abdullah Öcalan emphasised the importance of the historical alliance of Kurds and Turks and said,"A historical alliance is emerging. All Kurds will establish a solid alliance with Turkey. The Misak-ı Milli Commission will discuss this. Without Turkish-Kurdish unity, no one can remain strong in the region. This alliance has existed since the Hittites. The solution to the Kurdish problem in Turkey is the solution to the problem in Iraq, Syria and even Iran. The Middle East democratic alliance is the next step."