PKK Calls for Turkey to Ease Detention Conditions of Abdullah Ocalan

The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has urged Turkey to ease the isolation conditions of imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan. The PKK refers to Ocalan as the “chief negotiator” of the party in potential peace negotiations with the Turkish state, following four decades of violent armed conflict. “We expect the Turkish state to make changes to the isolation conditions on Imrali Island and provide Ocalan with free and safe working conditions so he can direct the process,” stated Zanko Xweba, a representative of the PKK’s political wing. “Our leader is our chief negotiator,” clarified the PKK official. The PKK criticizes the lack of “guarantees or measures” from Turkey to facilitate the peace negotiations anticipated by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party. “So far, the Turkish state has not offered any guarantee or measure to facilitate the process. Turkey has not ceased its military operations” in Kurdistan in northern Iraq, Zanko Xweba declared. “Bombardments and gunfire continue to target our positions,” he emphasized. The representative of the political wing states that the PKK rejects the option of expelling its members from Turkey. “The PKK will end its armed action if the Turkish state genuinely desires peace and proceeds with necessary legislative changes so PKK members can integrate into a democratic society,” he said. “Real peace requires integration, not exile,” he added.