Fighters from Kurdish separatist group begin disarmament

The Kurdistan Workers' Party ( PKK ) guerrilla group begins its disarmament in Iraq this Friday 11th, after announcing in May the dissolution of the group after more than four decades of armed struggle against the Turkish state.

The group , considered terrorist by Turkey and its Western allies, began armed actions against Ankara in 1984 with the aim of creating a Kurdish state, in a conflict that has left more than 40,000 dead since then.

The handover of the first contingent of weapons will take place at a ceremony in Suleimaniya, in the Iraqi Kurdistan region, bordering Turkey and where Kurdish fighters take refuge in the mountains.

After announcing a public ceremony, authorities changed their minds and restricted access to a limited number of guests for security reasons.

Guests include members of the Turkish pro-Kurdish DEM party, which acted as a mediator between PKK founder Abdullah Öcalan and the Turkish government.

Through the DEM, the founder of the PKK, imprisoned since 1999, called in February for an end to hostilities and the start of negotiations for the dissolution of the guerrilla group, announced in May.

The process also had a prominent role from Devlet Bahçeli, an ally of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and leader of the nationalist MHP party, who a few months ago called on Kurdish fighters to renounce the armed struggle and “appear to express themselves in Parliament.”

'The power of politics'

On Wednesday, in a video message, Öcalan or “Apo” (“uncle”), as he is called by his followers, confirmed the imminent disarmament and stressed that it would happen “quickly”.

"I believe in the power of politics and social peace, not in weapons. And I ask that you put this principle into practice," he said.

Erdoğan also recently expressed confidence that “this promising process will be successfully completed as soon as possible, without obstacles or risk of sabotage.”

Authorities have not announced the number of Kurdish fighters who will participate in the ceremony or the type of weapons they will hand over.

"As a gesture of goodwill, a number of PKK fighters, who have fought against Turkish forces in recent years, will destroy or burn their weapons," a Kurdish commander, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP .

PKK commanders demand the release of their leader Öcalan to accelerate disarmament and dissolution. His situation "affects the process and slows it down," said Mustafa Karasu, a party leader.

But "Apo," who remains detained in the prison on Imrali Island near Istanbul, is not asking to be released and wants to separate the peace process from his personal fate.

Öcalan “contradicts the conditions imposed by the party, which demanded his release so that it could carry out the peace process,” said Boris James, a historian of Turkish movements.

The researcher also points to a potential problem due to the absence of "a third party to guarantee the integrity of the process." "There is still a very strong distrust between the PKK and the Turkish state. And the state has provided few guarantees to former combatants."

In fact, former combatants have reported that they continue to be targeted by Turkish forces bombing their positions in Iraq, despite the ongoing peace process.