Jailed Kurdish leader backs Turkiye's PKK peace bill
Shafaq News- Istanbul
Imprisoned Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtas on Sunday endorsed a bill that would reintegrate former Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) fighters into civilian life, a day before Turkiye's parliament is expected to vote on the measure.
Jailed since 2016 and still one of Turkiye's most prominent Kurdish figures despite formally withdrawing from politics, Demirtas is the former co-chair of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). He said the measure could "fundamentally change the fate of our country and region," stressing that the process was not intended to sow division, secure political bargains, or pursue fruitless negotiations.
The legislation is one of the most concrete steps yet toward ending a conflict that has run since 1984 and killed more than 40,000 people. The PKK, founded in 1978, took up arms against the Turkish state in pursuit of Kurdish self-rule and is designated a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the United States, and the European Union.
Selahattin Demirtaş ve Selçuk Mızraklı'nın Çerçeve Yasa görüşmelerine ilişkin Meclis Genel Kurulu’na gönderdikleri mesajhttps://t.co/QTmB8wQ52s pic.twitter.com/j1FCMqzO98
— DEM Parti (@DEMGenelMerkezi) August 9, 2026
Approved by parliament's Justice Committee on Friday, the proposal would suspend investigations and the enforcement of sentences against former fighters for periods ranging from five to 10 years. If no further offense is committed during that period, cases would be closed, and sentences deemed served, an outcome that could amount in practice to an amnesty.
The bill excludes intentional killings carried out as part of PKK activities, along with offenses punishable by life imprisonment committed before June 1, 2005. It does not address the status of PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan, 77, who has been held on Imrali Island, in the Sea of Marmara, since 1999. Ocalan has described the proposed law as "the key" to resolving the decades-old conflict, urging all sides to take responsibility for ensuring the process succeeds.
The initiative has drawn support from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), its Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) ally, and the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party).
Last year, Ocalan urged the PKK to convene a congress, lay down its arms, and formally disband, a call widely viewed as a potential turning point in efforts to end the conflict.
