'It Was Said That Martyrs and Veterans Would Not Be Hurt'... Then the Task of the 'PKK Commission' in Parliament Is Over!..

When IYI Party Ankara Deputy Yüksel Arslan was explaining why they did not participate in the “PKK commission” established in the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM), he claimed that “these were the demands of DEM from the commission,” and alleged that they requested: “granting autonomy to Kurds, mentioning ethnic origins in the Constitution instead of the ‘Turkish Nation,’ appointing governors to the East and Southeast, establishing a Kurdish army, having ‘Kurdistan’ possess its own interior and foreign ministries, making Kurdish an official language, and ensuring the mass return of PKK members from Kandil and other camps as well as from Europe.” This caused an uproar.

DEM immediately issued a statement, labeling the claims as “the delusions of a liar and a provocateur” and condemning this “hate speech.” They called the list “fabricated,” stated that they had never brought these issues to the commission’s agenda, and declared that their real agenda was “the brotherhood of peoples and lasting peace.” They further noted that the intention was “to damage the legitimacy the commission has formed in society.”

A denial also came from the Presidency’s Directorate of Communications Center for Combating Disinformation (DMM). Stating that the meetings held by the commission so far have been shared with the public and that the only closed session was the one where the Ministries of Interior and National Defense and the MİT Presidency gave presentations, the DMM emphasized that “the alleged demands or proposals were absolutely never on the agenda in any meeting, including this one.”

Finally, TBMM and Commission Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş said, “We know there are those who want to poison the process. Topics that were not discussed in the commission have been provoked. To put it mildly, this is clear provocation. All 51 of our members on the commission are in common determination against these circles.”

Are These Not a “List”?

The roadmap drawn by MHP Leader Devlet Bahçeli, the owner of the opening process, was for the terrorist leader in Imralı to ensure the PKK lays down its arms and dissolves as the “founding leader,” in exchange for benefiting from the “right to hope,” right?

That was all there was to it; yet that commission was established in the TBMM without any legal basis. According to the lists submitted by the parties, it decided to hear from hundreds of people and organizations, and finally, for some reason, former Speakers of Parliament. If things continue this way, let us not be surprised if the work resembles the function and fate of the commission investigating the July 15 coup attempt!..

Returning to the denied “list of demands”; they may not have been brought to the commission’s agenda yet, and perhaps they never will be, but it is crystal clear from what the terrorist leader in Imralı, the PKK ringleaders, and the DEM members themselves have said that these things are being discussed elsewhere.

Let us recall them in order.

Did the terrorist leader not link the “Kurdish issue” to the “monolithic interpretations of the Republic” in his February 27 call?.. Did he not speak of “regional and democratic confederalism” in the letter he sent to the PKK’s so-called congress?.. In his meetings with the Imralı messengers, did he not say that he used the expression “local democracy instead of autonomy because Turkey is very afraid of federation,” and add, “But this is autonomy everywhere in the world. There is no governor other than the elected mayor. Local police and local structures are tied to the municipality. We will draw such a framework of democracy in Turkey as well... There is the Spain example. He comes to the London municipality by election. Security and everything are tied to the mayoralty... Let us give the Scotland example. It has local militia, a national team, and many unique mechanisms.”?..

And what about the PKK?.. In its so-called dissolution congress, did it not declare Turks “genocidal,” criticize the Treaty of Lausanne and the 1924 Constitution, and point to the 1921 Constitution?.. Did it not declare that the terrorist leader’s call to lay down arms was “democratic confederalism” and announce that Turkey must make the necessary legal and legislative changes?.. Did it not make the establishment of a commission in Parliament a condition for this?.. Did it not demand that “Kurdish identity be brought under legal protection” through a constitutional amendment?.. After the commission in Parliament was established, while declaring the terrorist leader in Imralı the “chief negotiator,” did it not announce that “while there is a 100-year-old problem,” “it would be insufficient, wrong, and incomplete for the commission to only handle the laws for laying down arms and the return of guerrillas,” and that “it should also be discussed with the leadership”?.. And furthermore, did the PKK/KCK ringleaders in Europe, who are asked to return to Turkey and engage in politics, not call for “tearing up Lausanne”?..

What about the DEM members who are furious at IYI Party’s Yüksel Arslan? Did Group Deputy Chair Gülistan Koçyiğit not embrace the PKK’s targeting of Lausanne and the 1924 Constitution with the words, “We need a real confrontation. What happened at Lausanne is a truth, and the place where that monolithic structure in the '24 Constitution brought the country is also a truth.”?.. Did Co-Chair Tuncer Bakırhan not say, “We are offering an alternative that breaks the traditional nation-state model”?..

Did DEM members not also attend the so-called “Kurdish national conference” held in Qamishli, Syria?.. In the very first meeting of the commission, did Meral Danış Beştaş not say, “While the 1921 Constitution carried a spirit based on local administration, decentralization, and multiculturalism, the 1924 Constitution abandoned this pluralist understanding and brought a definition of citizenship based on a monolithic understanding,” and emphasize that “the right to mother tongue is an existential issue and the basis for the Kurdish people to live as equal citizens”?.. Did the DEM members not also report that the commission “undertook a historic role for the democratic and peaceful solution of the Kurdish issue”?..

Martyrs' Relatives and Veterans Have Said Their Last Words

Since the opening-process supporters, led by Erdoğan, promised that martyrs' relatives and veterans would not be hurt and that their consent would be obtained, the first to be heard in the commission was their representative. Let us summarize what they said and wanted.

Mustafa Işık, Chairman of the Turkey War Disabled Veterans, Martyrs' Widows and Orphans Association, reported that they announced their support for the “Turkey without terror” process upon being promised in meetings before the commission session that “terrorist leader Öcalan will never move from his place, those who participated in terrorist acts will not go unpunished, and they will not be able to walk the streets freely,” and explained the following:

“After the process began, many martyr families wanted to hold protest demonstrations by leaving coffins and returning their medals. We, however, tried to moderate the environment... The patience of martyrs' relatives and veterans should not be tested further. Celebrations with cries of victory should not be allowed. Lessons should be learned from what happened in Habur during the previous opening process. Even if the President sends a letter, martyrs' families and veterans will not be relieved unless a Turkey without terror is explained firsthand.”

Lokman Aylar, Chairman of the Turkey Veterans and Martyrs' Families Foundation, after stating that they saw no harm in rehabilitating young people who had not taken up arms, had been deceived, and had been kidnapped to the mountains, said, “Demands such as a general amnesty or the release of the terrorist organization’s ringleader can never be accepted... Because the terrorist organization’s ringleader is actually responsible for all terrorist crimes. We are very sensitive about this issue.”

Turkey War Veterans Association Chairman Beyazıt Yumuk also expressed their red lines as follows:

“First, we want the souls of our martyrs not to be hurt, and the pride of our veterans and their relatives not to be broken. People who have served terrorism need to go through a process of serving their sentences according to the Turkish Penal Code and being reintegrated into society. Seeing concrete steps on this issue will ease all of our hearts a little... Our second important red line is preventing the leadership cadre of the PKK terrorist organization from participating in social life, and ensuring that these people, who have massacred thousands of innocent people, serve their sentences.”

If it is to be taken into account; since the martyrs' relatives and veterans have said their last words, should it not have been said, “The commission’s task is complete. We can disperse.”?

But TBMM and Commission Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş, in their presence, while repeating that “there is no and will not be any give-and-take or bargaining at any stage of the process,” addressed the commission member deputies, saying, “We must increase social consent.”

Even if they try to ignore, pretend not to hear, not understand, and cover it up, since the spear no longer fits in the sack regarding the demands of the terrorist leader, the terrorist organization, and the DEM members, what and why will society be persuaded to consent to; if only they would explain that too!..

Müyesser YILDIZ

August 22, 2025