Turkey sets up parliamentary commission to oversee PKK disarmament

By Huseyin Hayatsever

ANKARA (Reuters) -Turkey’s parliament launched a commission on Tuesday to oversee the disarmament of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militant group following its jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan’s call for it to end its insurgency.

Thirty PKK militants burned their weapons in a ceremony in northern Iraq last month, marking a symbolic first step towards ending a decades-long struggle with Turkey in which more than 40,000 people have been killed.

Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus told lawmakers at the opening of the first session that one of the commission’s responsibilities would be to oversee the disarmament process.

“With the complete disarmament, the preparation of legal regulations that will make peace permanent is also among the responsibilities of this commission,” Kurtulmus said.

The PKK, designated a terrorist group by Turkey and its Western allies, began its insurgency in 1984. It decided in May to disband, disarm and end its armed struggle, saying it “has completed its historic mission”.

Its goals shifted over the decades from seeking an independent state to seeking greater Kurdish rights and limited autonomy in mainly Kurdish southeast Turkey.

All but one parliamentary party are represented in the commission, marking the first time multiple parties have formally gathered in parliament to address the peace process.

The main opposition CHP joined the commission on condition that it address democratisation steps, while the nationalist opposition IYI Party refused to take part, saying it will legitimise PKK demands.

The PKK’s decision to disband came after a public call from its long-imprisoned leader Ocalan, prompted by a surprise proposal in October from Erdogan’s ultra-nationalist ally Devlet Bahceli.

The pro-Kurdish DEM Party, Turkey’s third-largest, played a key role facilitating Ocalan’s peace call.

“Permanent peace is possible through a democratic solution process based on a legitimate and inclusive political foundation,” DEM’s Gulistan Kocyigit told the commission.

She said the DEM demands collective rights for Kurds, including the right to education in their mother tongue and steps to strengthen local governance.

DEM’s Meral Danis Bestas said steps should be taken to allow a review of Ocalan’s aggravated life sentence.

(Reporting by Huseyin Hayatsever, additional reporting by Ezgi Erkoyun; Editing by Daren Butler and Hugh Lawson)