PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan is held under isolation in İmralı Type F High Security Prison. Öcalan held a meeting with his nephew Ömer Öcalan on 23 October. During the visit, Abdullah Öcalan said: "The isolation continues. If the conditions are created, I have the theoretical and practical power to change this phase from the basis of conflict and violence to a legal and political ground". Abdullah Öcalan's message was on the agenda of political parties, civil society organisations, intellectuals, writers, academics and journalists.

 

In this context, a large number of intellectuals, writers, lawyers and academics who came together at a hotel in Taksim district of Istanbul's Beyoğlu district on 14 December called for steps to be taken for the solution of the Kurdish issue and published a joint text. 

 

Lawyer Rıza Türmen, activist Nurten Ertuğrul and artist Orhan Alkaya, who signed the text, made evaluations and emphasised that they will always shout their demand for peace.

 

TÜRMEN: KURDISH ISSUE MUST BE RESOLVED PEACEFULLY

 

Rıza Türmen stated that a "peace process" should be initiated and said: "The country should move away from the axis of violence to the axis of peace. Human rights and democracy are of great importance in the current period. Within this framework, the Kurdish issue must be resolved peacefully. If you want to have a situation of peace, democracy and respect for human rights in Turkey, you must find a peaceful solution to the Kurdish issue. You cannot bring peace to Turkey without solving the Kurdish issue. The issue is not only a Kurdish issue, it is the issue of the whole of Turkey. Therefore, such calls for peace and the conduct of the problem within the framework of peace are of great importance."

 

Stating that the current discussions are continuing, "We want a solution process to emerge from here. We are also working for that. The condition for this is to socialise this process. There must also be a demand from the society. This issue should not be an issue that only intellectuals and writers talk about among themselves. The public must embrace it. Because this process is also a war against poverty and undemocratic practices. It is necessary to show and explain this to the people. We, as intellectuals, will try to explain this to the people," Türmen said.

 

Reminding the remarks of Bahçeli, Türmen said: "Bahçeli made some statements, but the next day he said 'there is no Kurdish issue'. But these discourses also brought about a mobilisation. It is necessary to take advantage of this mobilisation. In fact, a door has been opened, we need to go through that door."

 

'HOW WILL THE DEVELOPMENTS IN SYRIA AFFECT THE PROCESS?

 

Emphasizing that the latest situation in Syria will also affect Turkey, Türmen said: “If Turkey does not pursue a peaceful policy in Syria, it cannot find a peaceful solution to the Kurdish issue here. You will seek a peaceful solution in Turkey, but you will fight Rojava in North Syria; this cannot be the case. We need to consider these as a whole. You will also achieve peace in Rojava. So there will be no Kurds in the future of Syria? Will the Kurds be an Arab Republic in the future of Syria? This would be very wrong.”

 

NURTEN ERTUĞRUL: KURDISH ISSUE

 

Activist Nurten Ertuğrul, noting that a solution to the Kurdish issue is a necessity and said: “Arabs, Persians, Ottomans, then Turkey, and from time to time Britain and Russia intervened in Kurdistan, and processes that oppressed and destroyed the society in 4 parts of Kurdistan were experienced. Iraq slaughtered Kurds for years and the world watched. But it is clear what their fate was in the end. If Iraq had solved the problem, it would not have disintegrated today, and I say the same thing about Syria. These places could have been different today with their history and different ethnic structures. In Iran, there is still resistance. They hang Kurds. In other words, Kurds are not accepted to live in the region called Kurdistan. That is why the Kurdish issue is not being solved. Naturally, what happens outside also affects Turkey.”  

 

Nurten Ertuğrul stated that he believes that the state authorities are in talks with PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan and said: “In this sense, Turkey is waiting for developments in Syria. Turkey has a goal in Syria. They may prolong the process due to these goals. But inevitably this process will come to the table and the current isolation will end. This is how I see it.” 

 

ALKAYA: WE WILL NOT GIVE UP THE DEMAND FOR PEACE

 

Artist Orhan Alkaya stated that the whole world and the Middle East need peace and said: “We have to find the answer to the question of who does not want peace. We will not give up the demand for peace. But we have to figure out who is blocking the peace process, who continues to perceive the Kurdish issue as a problem. There are those with good intentions, there are also war barons clustered around the arms industry. We have to continue this kind of work. Everyone should know that if the attacks continue in Syrian Kurdistan, in Rojava, there is a possibility that it will burn around. That is why the conflicts in Rojava must end. Syria is inevitably heading towards partition. But if a mentality that continues to see the people of Rojava as enemies plays a role, the field will become very dangerous. Because the process there will also affect here.”

 

'WE WILL DO OUR BEST'

 

Reminding that Abdullah Öcalan is under isolation as well as being an interlocutor, Alkaya continued: "Isolation is a crime no matter to whom it is applied. The rulers must immediately give up on this. As artists, we will do our best for the solution of the Kurdish issue. We will continue to say what we say against these rulers. It is difficult to say that we will get a result, but it is also wrong to say that we will not get a result. We will continue to keep our demand for peace alive until the end."

 

MA / Ömer İbrahimoğlu