MHP leader proposes formal status for Öcalan in anti-terror process

ANKARA

Nationalist leader Devlet Bahçeli on May 5 proposed granting jailed PKK head Abdullah Öcalan an official role as a “peace process and politicization coordinator” as part of the government’s anti-terror initiative.

"If there is a status issue for Abdullah Öcalan, this should be addressed in a way that serves the terror-free Türkiye process. I propose that this be called the peace process and politicization coordinator,” Bahçeli said told lawmakers from his Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) in parliament.

Alternative formulations could also be considered, he added. "Our goal is for the founding leadership of PKK to serve under this definition."

Bahçeli said clarifying Öcalan’s status was essential for the process to function effectively. “It is not possible to conduct the process healthily by pretending that this issue does not exist,” he said, signaling that political and legal arrangements would be the next step.

The Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) has repeatedly called for changes to Öcalan’s status. The party has advocated designating him as a “chief negotiator,” arguing that such a role should allow him to meet with a broad range of interlocutors.

Later on May 5, DEM Party co-chair Tuncer Bakırhan described Bahçeli’s proposal as “historic” and voiced support.

"Depriving the interlocutor of opportunities to work, meet and communicate in such a difficult process cannot be explained by political reason," Bakırhan said.

The pro-Kurdish DEM Party has been acting as an intermediary in the process, conducting visits to Öcalan at the İmralı prison island off Istanbul.

The campaign gained momentum after PKK announced last May that it had ended its armed activities and dissolved its organizational structure. Two months later, a symbolic ceremony was held in Iraq during which weapons were publicly burned.

Parliament subsequently established the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission to oversee the initiative. Led by Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş, the 51-member body included representatives from all parliamentary parties except the İYİ (Good) Party.