Demirtas says PKK can be disarmed post-Erdogan
“We will definitely solve our problems in Parliament, within the framework of the law, and ensure great social peace.”
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Selahattin Demirtas, the imprisoned ex-co-chair of Turkey's pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), suggested on Thursday that the disarmament of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) may be possible if the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, were to lose the upcoming general elections.
Halkımıza sözümüz olsun, çatışmadan beslenen Erdoğan rejimi sonrasında PKK'nin Türkiye'de tümüyle silah bırakması için elimizden geleni yapacağız ve mutlaka başaracağız.
— Selahattin Demirtaş (@hdpdemirtas) April 13, 2023
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“Let's make a promise to our people, we will do our best to completely disarm the PKK in Turkey after the Erdogan regime, fed by conflict, and we will definitely succeed,” he said on Twitter.
“We will definitely solve our problems in Parliament, within the framework of law, and ensure great social peace.”
A peace process between the Turkish government and the PKK collapsed in 2015.
Demirtas echoed sentiments expressed by Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), who visited HDP leaders on March 20, and argued the Kurdish issue could be solved within the Turkish parliament.
Kilicdaroglu in a foreword of a new book authored by CHP Deputy Chair Sezgin Tanrikulu also suggested the issue should be solved within the parliament, Gercek news reported.
Demirtas has also criticized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government for imprisoning those who advocated for peace, closing political parties, and inciting conflict in a bid to secure more electoral support.
Read More: Turkish opposition leader leads over president Erdogan: survey
Polls show that the Turkish opposition leader, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, could possibly beat President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the upcoming May presidential elections.
The HDP has publicly indicated they will support the Turkish opposition, as they did in the 2019 municipal elections in Ankara and Istanbul, resulting in a win for the opposition.
Declining economic conditions and skyrocketing inflation rates in Turkey, and the sluggish emergency response to the earthquake crisis that caused the loss of thousands of lives, have contributed to Erdogan declining popularity.
