Why Turkey Is Talking to Its PKK Nemesis

Turks and Kurds may be trading accusations over responsibility for the execution-style murder of three Kurdish activists in the heart of Paris last week, but they agree on one point: the timing was no coincidence. The assassinations came just days after Turkey announced a new bid to find a political solution to its long-running conflict with its Kurdish population. The message? Peace-building will be no walk in the park. That’s because the conflict is too well-entrenched and the players too accustomed to violence — some 40,000 people have been killed in 30 years of insurgency and counterinsurgency. And also because it reaches into Iraq, Syria and Iran, not to mention Europe, where thousands of Kurds marched the streets last weekend to protest the killings. “There is no question that this was a warning — it shows just how difficult a peace process is going to be,” says Sezgin Tanrikulu, a well-known Turkish-Kurdish human rights lawyer and member of parliament. “First, the choice of location in the heart of Europe, then the timing, and that they were all women — including one who was widely respected among Kurds — had a huge emotional impact.” He was referring to Sakine Cansiz, 55, a founding member of the outlawed Kurdish PKK in 1978 and a leader of its women cadres. Despite its designation as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the European Union, the PKK retains considerable popularity among Kurds in Turkey and elsewhere. (MORE: Kurdish Assassinations in Paris Turn a Spotlight on Turkey-PKK Talks) Turkey’s government revealed earlier this month that it had begun talks with Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK leader serving a life term on an island prison. These talks are aimed at establishing a ceasefire and eventual disarmament of the PKK, in exchange for addressing unspecified Kurdish grievances. Turkish media reported that Ocalan’s demands appear to be limited to greater cultural rights, constitutional recognition and regional self-governance. “Ocalan’s demands aren’t challenging for the state,” Ahmet Turk, a senior Kurdish politician, told reporters after visiting the PKK leader in prisonImage may be NSFW.
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