A Turkish parliamentary commission on Wednesday approved a document outlining proposed legal frameworks for the dissolution of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
According to Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş, the document sets out a legal “roadmap” for the group’s dissolution and disarmament, as well as the reintegration of former PKK militants into society. It does not, however, offer an “amnesty arrangement” for former militants, Kurtulmuş stressed.
The main objective of the document - approved by 47 of the commission’s 50 members - is the realisation of a “terrorism-free Turkey” and the strengthening of democratic institutions.
The roughly 60-page text states that political reforms should be carried out in parallel with reciprocal steps by the PKK to disband and surrender its weapons. It also calls on the Turkish judiciary to review relevant legislation to ensure compliance with rulings by Türkiye’s Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights.
For decades, the PKK waged a violent insurgency against the Turkish state in which tens of thousands of people – both civilians and military personnel – were killed. The group is designated as a terrorist organisation by Ankara, Brussels and Washington.
Last year, the group’s Iraq-based leadership agreed to end its insurgent campaign, following an appeal by the PKK’s long-imprisoned leader, Abdullah Ocalan, for militants to lay down their arms.
In return, Ankara has pledged to pursue judicial reforms aimed at expanding Kurdish political participation and addressing long-standing Kurdish grievances.
Lawmakers from Turkiye’s pro-Kurdish DEM party cautiously welcomed the parliamentary document, saying the proposed legislative framework “must be enacted quickly.”
According to Gülistan Kılıç Koçyiğit, a senior DEM Party lawmaker, the document provides a “very important roadmap” for advancing the ongoing peace process.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said parliament would soon begin taking steps to implement the proposed legal framework.
“Discussions will now begin in parliament regarding the legal aspects of the process,” he told reporters.
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