Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan, who is held in İmralı F-Type High-Security Closed Prison, made a "Call for Peace and a Democratic Society" on February 27. In his call, Öcalan stated that the PKK should convene its congress. The PKK subsequently released a statement saying that it would fulfill the requirements of the call.

 

 

A significant statement regarding the congress was made by the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party). In the statement published by the Fırat News Agency (ANF), it was noted that the 12th Congress was held between May 5–7. It was also stated that the results of the congress, including comprehensive and detailed information and documents regarding the decisions made, will be shared with the public soon.

 

 

PKK 12th Congress said the following:

 

“The PKK’s 12th Congress was successfully held in the Medya Defense Zones between 5 and 7 May. The congress was conducted in two different areas in parallel with delegates representing all branches of the party.

 

The PKK’s 12th Congress convened upon the call of Leader Abdullah Öcalan. The congress, first of all, greeted Leader Apo with longing and respect, and read and evaluated the perspectives and proposals presented by Leader Abdullah Öcalan to the congress. In addition, a brief report of the PKK Central Committee was read and discussed at the congress.

 

Within this framework, the PKK’s 12th Congress, on the basis of Leader Apo’s call, took decisions of historic importance concerning the PKK.

 

Held in May, the Month of Martyrs, the 12th PKK Congress commemorated all the heroic martyrs of the 52-year struggle with respect and gratitude. The Congress called on our patriotic people and all democratic socialist forces to properly embrace and live in accordance with all the national and democratic values that this great 52-year struggle has brought forth.

 

The 12th PKK Congress also commemorated Martyr Sırrı Süreyya Önder with respect and gratitude, one of those who contributed most to the Congress’ preparation. The Congress called on everyone to work together to achieve the peace and democratic-society goals of Sırrı Süreyya Önder, a comrade to Leader Apo for 12 years.

 

EXTENSIVE AND DETAILED INFORMATION WILL BE SHARED SOON

 

Extensive and detailed information and documents regarding the outcomes and decisions of the 12th PKK Congress will be shared with the public very soon, after the results from the two different areas are combined.

 

On this basis, we once again commemorate all our heroic martyrs -in the person of our first great martyr, Comrade Haki?Karer- with respect and gratitude; we call on our patriotic people and pro-democracy friends to commemorate our heroic martyrs in every field and to further raise the struggle for the freedom of Leader Apo.”

 

WHAT HAPPENED? 

 

After 44 months of total isolation, Abdullah Öcalan met with his nephew, Ömer Öcalan—Member of Parliament for Riha (Urfa) from the Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party—on October 23, 2024, during a family visitation. Subsequently, the DEM Party’s İmralı Delegation met with Öcalan on December 28, 2024. The delegation included Sırrı Süreyya Önder and Pervin Buldan. The delegation also visited İmralı on January 22 and February 27.

 

In the third meeting, Abdullah Öcalan, together with his fellow inmates Ömer Hayri Konar, Hamili Yıldırım, and Veysi Aktaş, made a “Call for Peace and a Democratic Society.” The statement was also supported by Ahmet Türk, Pervin Buldan, Sırrı Süreyya Önder, Tülay Hatimoğulları, Tuncer Bakırhan, Cengiz Çiçek, and Faik Özgür Erol.

 

CALL FOR PEACE AND A DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY

 

Abdullah Öcalan’s statement included the following remarks:

 

"Call for Peace and Democratic Society 

 

The PKK was born in the 20th century, in the most violent epoch of the history of humanity, amidst the two World wars, under the shadow of the experience of real socialism and the cold war around the World. The outright denial of Kurdish reality, restrictions on basic rights and freedoms - especially freedom of expression - played a significant role in its emergence and development. 

 

The PKK has been under the heavy realities of the century and the system of real socialism in terms of its adopted theory, program, strategy and tactics. In the 1990s, with the collapse of real socialism due to internal dynamics, the dissolution of the denial of Kurdish identity in the country, and improvements in freedom of expression, led to weakening of the PKK´s foundational meaningfulness and resulted in excessive repetition. 

 

Throughout the history of more than 1000 years, Turkish and Kurdish relations were defined in terms of mutual cooperation and alliance, and Turks and Kurds have found it essential to remain in this voluntary alliance to maintain their existence and survive against hegemonic Powers.

 

The last 200 years of capitalist modernity have been marked by primarily with the aim to break this alliance. The forces involved, in line with their class-based interests, have played a key role in furthering this objective. With monist interpretations of the Republic, this process has accelerated.  Today, the main task is to restructure the historical relationship, which has become extremely fragile, without excluding consideration for beliefs with the spirit of fraternity.

 

The need for a democratic society is inevitable. The PKK, the longest and most extensive insurgency and armed movement in the history of the Republic, found social base and support, and was primarily inspired by the fact that the channels of democratic politics were closed. 

 

The inevitable outcome of the extreme nationalist deviations - such as a separate nation-state, federation, administrative autonomy, or culturalist solutions - fails to answer the historical sociology of the society.  

 

Respect for identities, free self-expression, democratic self-organization of each segment of society based on their own socio-economic and political structures, are only possible through the existence of a democratic society and political space.

 

The second century of the Republic can  achieve and assure permanent and fraternal continuity only if it is crowned with democracy. There is no alternative to democracy in the pursuit and realization of a political system. Democratic consensus is the fundamental way. 

   

The language of the epoch of peace and democratic society needs to be developed in accordance with this reality. 

 

The call made by Mr. Devlet Bahceli, along with the will expressed by Mr. President, and the positive responses from the other political parties towards the known call, has created an environment in which I am making a call for the laying down of arms, and I take on the historical responsibility of this call. 

 

As in the case with any modern community and party whose existence has not been abolished by force, would voluntarily do, convene your congress and make a decision; all groups must lay their arms and the PKK must dissolve itself. 

 

I convey my greetings to all those who believe in co-existence and who look forward to my call. 

 

February 25, 2025

 

Abdullah Öcalan"   

 

'LEGAL DIMENSION MUST BE RECOGNISED' 

 

After the statement, Sırrı Süreyya Önder said that Abdullah Öcalan had tol the delegation that "Undoubtedly, in practice, laying down arms and the PKK's dissolution require the recognition of democratic politics and the legal dimension."

 

HOLIDAY VISIT

 

On March 31, Abdullah Öcalan and the other prisoners on İmralı Islan met with their relatives on the occasions of Eid el-Fitr. 

 

POLITIC CONTACTS

 

Following Öcalan’s call, the DEM Party’s İmralı Delegation accelerated its diplomatic efforts. Numerous meetings were held across the Federated Kurdistan Region, North and East Syria, Europe, Turkey. 

 

As part of the process, DEM Party İmralı Delegation members Sırrı Süreyya Önder and Pervin Buldan met with the President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on April 10. 

 

It was expected that the delegation would return to İmralı after this meeting. However, on April 15, Sırrı Süreyya Önder suffered a heart attack due to an aortic aneurysm. He passed away on May 3. 

 

While Önder was still receiving treatment, Pervin Buldan and Faik Özgür Erol, an attorney from the Asrin Law Office and a member of the İmralı Delegation, held a new meeting with Abdullah Öcalan on April 22.