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The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) turned over a group of its members to Turkish authorities yesterday at the Habur border gate, a groundbreaking move that may lead to the disarmament of the PKK, strengthening the hand of the government in its recently launched democratization package to end the country's decades-old Kurdish problem.

Today's interactive toolbox Video Photo Audio Send to print Send to my friend Post your comments Read comments The group was sent to Turkish authorities for processing. The symbolic move was initiated after Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the terrorist PKK serving life in prison on the island of İmrali, urged the PKK last week to send what he described as “peace groups” to surrender to the Turkish authorities.

Eight armed members of the PKK, comprising four women and four men, the eldest being 57 and the youngest 24, joined a larger group coming from the Mahmur refugee camp in northern Iraq along the way. The total number of people in the group was reported to be 34. The group entered Turkey from the Habur gate yesterday afternoon. Those present include pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) leaders Ahmet Türk and Emine Ayna, DTP party officials and deputies, and thousands of people, all of whom received the group with jubilation.

The crowd chanted slogans in support of Öcalan and the PKK. A tent was erected near the border in the early hours of the morning for five authorized public prosecutors, one judge and lawyers. They were expected to process the group and hand it over to authorities. As the group approached the border area, the border gate was closed to all other passages. All the preparations were supervised by Şırnak Governor Ali Yerlikaya.

The group was expected to arrive early in the morning, but the convoy escorting the Mahmur group got into a traffic accident, leaving one dead and several injured. The armed PKK members then joined a group heading down the Arbil-Mosul road. Upon arrival, the group was met by an overjoyed crown, which had been waiting since the previous night. The 26 people coming from the Mahmur refugee camp, including four children and nine women, were immediately released after their identity was confirmed.

But the procedure for the eight armed members of the PKK took longer. Most of the nearly 10,000 inhabitants of the Mahmur refugee camp left Turkey in 1994, but some were born in the camp. Ankara claims the Mahmur camp serves as a safe haven for the PKK, though it is under the control of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The eight PKK members gave a deposition and were debriefed at a military post near the border after crossing the border yesterday.

They then underwent a health checkup and were turned over to police to testify. After this testimony, they were released, but a court case will be opened against them for being members of an outlawed organization, which is standard procedure. The eight PKK members were not expected to avail themselves of Article 221 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), popularly known as the “active repentance law,” which envisages lower punishments for PKK members who surrender if they provide information about the organization they belonged to and if they were not involved in violence.

According to the practice, members who surrender are asked if they regret joining the organization, but some lawyers, including Diyarbakır Bar Association President Emin Aktar, say the procedure should not be necessarily. Instead, they say, only saying “I am turning myself in of my own free will” should be enough. Upon arrival, the PKK members reportedly said they had returned of their own free will and in accordance with the wishes of Öcalan in the hopes of opening the way for democratic politics.

The treatment of the PKK members might open the way for a wave of PKK members turning themselves in during the democratization process and was considered a “test for the government” by many experts, including Aktar. He said not forcing PKK members to say they regret joining the PKK will accelerate the process. Both PKK members and residents of the Mahmur camp brought letters for President Abdullah Gül, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Parliament Speaker Mehmet Ali Şahin. Öcalan suggested that these “peace groups” should meet with various segments of society to discuss possible solutions to Turkey's long-standing Kurdish problem. The Turkish government launched an initiative in late July to solve the Kurdish question.

The government has yet to provide details, but officials have frequently underlined that the process aims to make every Turkish citizen an equal and free member of a highly developed democracy. But some circles, including the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), both of which are against the initiative, claim that before taking any steps, terrorism should come to an end and that the PKK must surrender.

Öcalan, in urging for a small group of PKK members, dubbed a peace group, to surrender, underlined that such a move will help solve the deadlock in “democratic politics.” Speaking at a press conference in Şırnak prior to the group's arrival, DTP leader Türk said the move is a sign of how Öcalan can contribute to peace efforts if he is given the opportunity. “Öcalan wanted the peace groups after he noticed a deadlock in the process.

This is an indication of what he can achieve if he is taken as a counterpart [in negotiations],” Türk said. He suggested that the groups' arrival is a move that will strengthen the government's position, though the government has up until now not been able to benefit from opportunities provided by the process. Following this PKK gesture, Türk suggested, military operations should be stopped in order to discuss a solution in a free atmosphere. “If the state takes one step, the PKK will take 10 steps,” he said, but added that the approach of the government and the state should not be based on the discourse of “they surrendered” and “they were liquidated.” “Such an approach did not lead us anywhere,” he said, urging the parties to not repeat the failed process of 1999. In 1999, when Öcalan was captured, he urged a group from the PKK to surrender.

At that time, eight PKK members with guns surrendered to Turkish officials, but after their trial, they were sentenced to prison for up to 10 years. One of them, Seydi Fırat, who served seven years in prison, ushered the group onto Turkish territory yesterday.

Türk also warned that if members of the group are arrested, this will inflict a new disaster on the society. “Our people will not accept any arrests. When these groups are released, they will be able to convey their message to the public opinion and politics,” Türk said.

Source - Todays Zaman