The Kurdish militant group the PKK, has announced it is laying down its arms and disbanding after waging 40-year insurgency against Turkey.
The development is coming after the group’s jailed leader, Abdullah Ocalan, in February, called on the organisation to disband.
The PKK, which has since been tagged as a terrorist group by Turkey, the EU, UK and US said it has now resolved to pursue it goals through democratic means.
The PKK insurgency initially aimed to create an independent homeland for Kurds, who account for about 20% of Turkey’s population, has since moved away from its separatist goals, focusing instead on more autonomy and greater Kurdish rights.
More than 40,000 people have been killed during the conflict.
In February, Ocalan, 76, called on his movement to lay down its arms and dissolve itself. The PKK leader has been in solitary confinement in prison on an island in the Sea of Marmara, south-west of Istanbul, since 1999.
Ocalan wrote a letter from prison in February saying “there is no alternative to democracy in the pursuit and realisation of a political system. Democratic consensus is the fundamental way.”
It is unclear what Ocalan and his supporters will get in return for disbanding but there is speculation that he may be paroled.
Meanwhile, Kurdish politicians will be hoping for a new political dialogue, and a pathway towards greater Kurdish rights.
The dialogue Daily Intel gathered would persuade both sides to enter into deal now.
More so, President Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey needs the support of pro Kurdish political parties if he is to be able to run again in Turkey’s next presidential election, due in 2028.
The decision to disband was an important step towards a “terror-free Turkey”, and the process would be monitored by state institutions, a spokesperson for President Tayyip Erdogan’s AK Party said, according to Reuters news agency.
Winthrop Rodgers, from the international affairs think tank Chatham House, said it would take “a major democratic transition by Turkey” to accommodate demands from Kurdish political parties.
There has been “some goodwill” from some Turkish leaders in recent months, Rodgers said, which allowed the PKK disbandment to play out.
He added: “But whether that extends to the major changes needed to ensure full Kurdish participation in politics and society is far less clear.
“In a lot of ways, the ball is in Turkey’s court.”
