Kurds say PKK militants heeding jailed leader’s peace call is the right move

DIYARBAKIR, (Turkey): Residents in Diyarbakir, Turkey’s largest Kurdish-majority city, said on Sunday that the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party’s (PKK) decision to heed its jailed leader’s call for peace was correct and prosperity would follow if the decades-old conflict ended.

On Saturday, the PKK declared an immediate ceasefire, a news agency close to it said, heeding jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan’s disarmament call, in what could be a major step towards ending a 40-year insurgency that has killed more than 40,000 people.

President Tayyip Erdogan’s government, its nationalist ally, and the pro-Kurdish DEM Party have voiced support for the peace call. However, Erdogan also warned that Ankara would resume military operations against the militant group if promises are not kept.

Zihni Capin, a teacher, said in Diyarbakir that people were “exhausted both mentally and physically” by the conflict, and added he hoped the process would conclude in a way that contributes to “prosperity, peace and happiness” in the region.

“I think it is a very correct and appropriate decision. Hopefully, the process will meet the expectations of all the people in Turkey and the Middle East,” he said.

The PKK is designated a terrorist group by Turkey and its Western allies. It called on Saturday for greater freedoms for Ocalan, who has been kept in near total isolation since 1999, to advance the disarmament process, but Ankara has said there would be no negotiations.

Tuncer Bakirhan, co-chair of DEM, said on Sunday that political and legal adjustments were now “inevitable” after the peace call, and added that Turkey’s parliament had a “historic role” to play.

“This process is not one that should be squandered. It must not remain on paper only,” Bakirhan told DEM members in Ankara. “The call is not one for winning and losing… There is no winner, no loser,” he added.

The ceasefire could have wide-ranging implications for the region if it succeeds in ending the conflict between the PKK - now based in the mountains of northern Iraq - and the Turkish state.

It could also give Erdogan a domestic boost and an historic opportunity to bring peace and development to southeast Turkey, where the conflict has killed thousands and severely damaged the economy.

Zulkuf Kacar, who works as a purchasing manager outside Turkey, said those who lay down arms need to be given amnesty.

“Enough is enough, this suffering. This suffering needs to end,” Kacar said in Diyarbakir.