OCALAN asks for dissolution of the PKK, the historical appeal from prison in Türkiye

Because Ocalan wants to dissolve the PKK

” An appeal for peace and democratic society ”. This is the title of the document with which Ocalan announced the decision from the prison on the island of Imrali, south of Istanbul, where he has been held since 1999 and where he is serving an life imprisonment sentence.

“I take the historical responsibility of this appeal” to disarmament, said Ocalan, 75 years old, among the founders of the PKK in 1978. A group considered a terrorist organization in Turkey, as well as in Great Britain and in the United States, that Ocalan explains to be “born in the twentieth century, in the most violent era in the history of humanity, in the middle of the two world wars, in the shade of the experience of real socialism. And of the Cold War all over the world ”. Furthermore ” a significant role in its birth and in its development ” have played ” the total denial of the Kurdish reality, the restrictions on fundamental rights and freedoms, in particular the freedom of expression ”.

At the same time, however, the Kurdish leader notes that ” during over a thousand years of history the relationships between Turks and Kurds have been defined in terms of mutual cooperation and alliance, and Turks and Kurds considered it essential to remain in this voluntary alliance to maintain their existence and survive against the hegemonic powers ”. Now, writes Ocalan, ” the need for a democratic society is inevitable. The PKK found social base and support and was mainly inspired by the fact that the channels of democratic policy were closed ”. Speaking of the Kurdish question, Ocalan stresses that ” respect for identity, freedom of expression, the democratic self-organization of each segment of society based on its socio-economic and political structures are possible only through the existence of a democratic society and a political space “.

The Kurdish leader therefore adds that ” permanent and fraternal continuity can be achieved and guaranteed only if it is crowned by democracy. There is no alternative to democracy in the research and implementation of a political system. Democratic consensus is the fundamental path ”. And therefore, ” the language of peace and democratic society must be developed in accordance with this reality “.

Already in the nineties, Ocalan underlines, “with the collapse of real socialism due to internal dynamics, the dissolution of the denial of the Kurdish identity and improvements in the freedom of expression led to the weakening of the fundamental meaning of the PKK and led to an excessive repetition”.

So, he concludes the appeal with a fundamental message: “All groups must lay down the weapons and the PKK must melt”. Finally “greetings to all those who believe in coexistence and who look forward to my appeal ”.