PKK says Turkey peace bill needs Ocalan role, political guarantees
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) on Sunday criticized Turkey’s proposed peace-process legislation, saying the draft contains serious flaws and warning that its fighters will not disarm without guarantees for jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan’s role and the right to participate in democratic politics.
The statement came a day after Turkey’s parliamentary Justice Committee approved the draft Bill on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Cohesion. The bill is expected to be debated by parliament later in August.
The PKK, which announced its dissolution and adopted the name Kurdistan Freedom Movement in May 2025, said the legislation fails to comprehensively address the Kurdish issue, including by avoiding the term “Kurdish” and focusing primarily on the surrender of weapons.
The proposed law would establish a legal framework for the next stage of the peace process. It includes provisions to suspend certain investigations, prosecutions and sentences linked to PKK-related offenses if the group fully disarms and dissolves.
It would also provide a framework for the return and reintegration of PKK members who have not been involved in violent acts, while creating a government body to oversee the process and register surrendered weapons and other materials.
The PKK said the process cannot move forward without what it described as Ocalan’s “free life and work,” arguing that his role must be clearly defined in the legislation.
The group also called for guarantees that former fighters returning to Turkey would be able to engage in democratic politics without being prosecuted or arrested over their previous affiliation or political statements.
“If they go to Turkey and are unable to conduct democratic politics,” the PKK said, the disarmament process would not proceed and politicians who moved to Europe would also be unable to return.
The latest dispute comes amid Turkey’s renewed peace initiative, which gained momentum after Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli’s outreach to pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party lawmakers in October 2024 and subsequent meetings between a DEM delegation and Ocalan.
On Feb. 27, 2025, Ocalan called on the PKK to disarm and dissolve, prompting the group to declare a ceasefire. On July 11, 2025, 30 PKK fighters symbolically burned their weapons during a ceremony near Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan Region.
Bahceli has continued to support the process and has called for Ocalan to benefit from the “Right to Hope,” a legal principle concerning the possibility of release and periodic review for prisoners serving life sentences.
The PKK said the proposed legislation should instead serve as the starting point for broader democratic reforms, including guarantees for freedom of thought and political organization.
The Turkish government’s proposed framework would take effect after the National Security Council confirms that the PKK and affiliated organizations have ended their physical existence and surrendered their weapons, as verified by security institutions.