Path to Peace: Turkey's Commission and Kurdish Dialogue

Senior Kurdish lawmakers in Turkey emphasize that achieving peace with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) requires legal protections for militants willing to disarm, discussions with the group's imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan, and a relaxation of the crackdown on political opposition.

In February, Ocalan called for an end to the PKK's insurgency. Responding to this, Turkey's parliament initiated a commission this month to oversee the disarmament of the PKK, an outlawed group designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its allies. Efforts are underway to resolve a conflict spanning four decades and affecting neighboring Syria and Iraq.

The commission, featuring pro-Kurdish DEM Party MPs, aims to expedite reforms. An agreement requires meeting with Ocalan and providing a legal framework for militants returning to political life. Tensions between pro-Kurdish parties and the government, particularly over opposition crackdowns, remain a barrier to achieving peace.

(With inputs from agencies.)