Jailed PKK leader Öcalan says contract needed, not amnesty

DİYARBAKIR

This file photo shows Sırrı Süreyya Önder (L) during a visit to Abdullah Öcalan (R) on İmralı island. DHA Photo

The imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Abdullah Öcalan, has said a general amnesty cannot be a solution to the Kurdish problem, and instead to offered make a “democratic contract,” according to People’s Democratic Party (HDP) co-chair Sırrı Süreyya Önder.

“This cannot be solved with an amnesty. Even the promise of an amnesty is not right. A democratic contract must be made first. If you have a democratic contract you need an arbitrator board, an audience, and it must be enforced. There must be an independent monitoring group to prevent mutual accusations. That is what I mean when I say laws and a legal framework,” Öcalan was quoted as saying by Önder, according to the Fırat News Agency, known for its close ties with the PKK.

Öcalan also reportedly stated that many issues, including the return of PKK militants at the Mahmur camps, should have been discussed and agreed upon so far, but have not been mentioned at all.

Önder said the jailed PKK head criticized the government over its lack of effort in the ongoing process, and said he had warned against the danger of his contribution ceasing.

Meanwhile, Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) Diyarbakır deputy Leyla Zana and Önder have departed for northern Iraq, in order to deliver a letter from Öcalan to Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) President Massoud Barzani. They received the letter during a meeting with the PKK head at İmralı Island prison on Feb. 8.

Önder and Zana will also visit Kandil Mountains, where PKK bases are located, to deliver Öcalan’s latest remarks.