Which one is correct? | Ali Bayramoğlu

The previous day, I had attended TRT News’ question-answer program with Davutoğlu. Davutoğlu was giving the following answer to the question, which was indicating that there is a serious distance between the Kurdish community’s and political rulership’s expectancies regarding the Resolution Process and was seeking a clarification on this matter:

“The Resolution Process is actually; the disappearance of this question within the equal citizenship principle, the disarmament of the organization and paving of political ways where any kind of demand will be stated… The point the Resolution Process should arrive at is: providing an independence field, where every kind of demand can be voiced, and if those demands can be voiced in a peaceful way, then where nobody uses violence and the language of weapons again….”

The view of the political rulership is resting on a couple of bases:

1- The Kurdish issue cannot be discussed with the organization and Öcalan. What is being discussed with them now is the disarmament and the militants’ integration matters. Thus, a negotiation is not the point in question.

2- The main objective of the Resolution Process is the disarmament of the organization and the expanding of the political field.

3- Necessary steps towards the equal citizenship principle and the Kurdish community’s demands had been taken. The shortcomings will also be completed.

4- The Kurdish issue means holding talks with the PKK and accepting them as the representative of the Kurds; however, there exists a majority outside the segment that supports PKK, and this majority is dramatically being represented by AK Party.

5- The autonomy demand cannot be accepted. Either within this frame or from the point of the government’s essential principles, this demand cannot be accepted. The Metropolitan Legislation is of a scale that will be enough to meet the demands of reinforcing the local authorities.

These remarks are nothing new of course. These remarks are indicating a point of view and strategy, which had been voiced many times by Tayyip Erdoğan, during his Prime Ministry, and other related ministers. Around the trio of “disarmament”, “democratization” and “normalization”, this was the actual thing that had been defined regarding the Resolution Process, since the first day.

Then what is the expectancy of the Kurdish side?

It’s not a secret; autonomy, education in mother tongue and amnesty… These are the three expectancies of the Kurdish political movement that are interlocked.

As Mesut Yeğen had beautifully stated; "If the Kurdish issue is the problem of the Kurds that has an issue on this matter and if the PKK is representing this problem one way or another with the methods of riot and armed-struggle, then we are facing a hard nut to crack. In this case, the problem in question is a problem, which cannot be evaded by pointing at the heterogeneous communal Kurdish texture. Even if the organization is correct in the sense of principle, it’s the naked truth that at this point the way towards resolution in the Resolution Process can only be taken by being in touch with the organization.

As long as the shears between the sides are not closed, it is clear that these contradictions of the Resolution Process will frequently cause eruptions.

However, there are also some uncertainties regarding this matter.

As a matter of fact, the statements of HDP’s Co-Chairman Demirtaş yesterday, which are about the itinerary, were in the opposite direction of Prime Minister Davutoğlu’s emphases.

Demirtaş was saying:

“Our delegation will be going to İmralı together with the monitoring committee and the government committee. The following is the matter, which had been discussed between Hakan Fidan and Abdullah Öcalan and upon which both sides had reached an agreement. The government committee will come, our delegation will be at the table, Abdullah Öcalan will be present along with the monitoring committee. Everyone will be sitting at the same table at the same time. The parties will be presenting their road maps to each other. Thus, the negotiation period will be started. At İmralı, the government will say that these are our solution suggestions regarding the social problems, and we will say, “This is our suggestion.”

There are 8 or 9 topics like suggestions related with the economic, security, women, and environmental problems. The parties will be discussing these clause-by-clause….”

Which one is correct?

However, the issue of the distance between the parties is still standing like the main element.

#Kurdish issue

#disarmament

#government

#Ahmet Davutoğlu

#Kurds

#Erdoğan