Duran Kalkan, member of the KCK Executive Council spoke about the democratic solution to the Kurdish question as the last chance for Turkey. He said: "Our chief negotiator is Rêber Apo [Abdullah Öcalan]. We have always been behind the processes carried out by Rêber Apo, and we will also be behind it now. We will implement his decisions. But one has to highlight that, apart from words, we don’t see anything in practice."

Towards the end of last year, there were two visits to Imrali with the people's leader Abdullah Öcalan. Since then, there have been many discussions regarding a possible solution to the Kurdish question and a general democratization. Do you see that we are currently moving towards a solution? And what role has your global campaign played in the current developments so far?

Firstly, I salute Rêber Apo, who is the pioneer of the most meaningful resistance in history. As you mentioned, two meetings have taken place with Rêber Apo at the end of the past year – first on October 23rd and then again on December 28th. In the course of the second meeting, Rêber Apo was able to issue a message through the delegation that met with him to the public, that was more comprehensive than what we learned from the first meeting. At the first meeting, it was his nephew who went to see him. And the meeting was considered as a family visit. But in the second meeting, it was the delegation of the DEM Party.

There was a public statement, and Rêber Apo’s message was conveyed. Afterward, the delegation took up its work. They met with the headquarters of the parliamentary parties and met with several further individuals and organizations, and at the end, they gave a public statement summarizing what results they had reached so far and gave partial information about the content of the meeting with Rêber Apo through the press.

We have followed these developments carefully and are trying to understand the message coming from Rêber Apo and what the delegation of the DEM Party has achieved. Apart from what is reflected in the press, no further information is available to us. Comrade Cemil Bayik has already elaborated on this. We have not received any calls, messages or requests officially until now. We do not know the content of the ongoing discussions. Just like the public, like everyone else, we are trying to understand the situation by looking at the official statements made in the press and to draw lessons from Rêber Apo’s messages.

Many things are being stated, and a lot of discussions are going on, but there is no change in practice. A discussion has arisen. This is of great value and importance, and our leadership has issued a statement accordingly. We value these discussions, are following them closely, and, as we have publicly stated, we are approaching this responsibly. After all, our chief negotiator is Rêber Apo. We have always been behind the process to be carried out by Rêber Apo, and we will also be behind it now. We will implement his decisions. But one has to highlight that, apart from words, we don’t see anything in practice. There is no change in the discourse or practice of the ruling circles, especially the AKP. They don’t take the whole thing seriously and act as if they’re ecstatic. That, in fact, simply reveals how frivolously they are. This is due to the government. The words and statements of the ruling circles, especially Tayyip Erdoğan and the AKP circles, direct the press.

Of course, there are also some in other parties that provoke as well; their practices continue. Generally speaking, there has been no change in practice. The attacks against the people, the arrests, and the forceful appointing of trustees continue. They are raising prices, and the oppression and exploitation continue. There has been no change in Imrali regarding the situation of Rêber Apo. The fact that there have been meetings is a result of the struggle carried out on the basis of the global freedom campaign under the name of ‘Freedom for Abdullah Ocalan, a Political Solution to the Kurdish Question‘. That is something we have expressed and evaluated before. This is a great success. A breach was opened in total isolation. There was a statement of our leadership emphasizing the importance of opening this breach. But still there is no practice beyond that. Any changes made by the ruling circles regarding the situation of Rêber Apo, regarding the change in the situation in Imrali, have not been reflected in public opinion. We have no such information.

So, of course, the isolation continues. The Imrali system continues as it is. Rêber Apo’s current conditions continue. There has been no change in his condition. Sure, there are discussions, the delegation of the DEM Party held talks, and the political parties in Turkey made statements. Of course, we see these as meaningful and important. But these are just discussions. There is no practice that matches the optimism expressed in the discussions. For example, there is no information on whether the parliament is working on the issue or not, whether legal arrangements are being made or not. Devlet Bahceli made a call, and many circles joined this call. It was said that Rêber Apo would come to the parliament and speak there in the DEM Party group. But how will he come from Imrali? May he come. Who is preventing him from coming? Have those who called for him to come to ensure his arrival done anything? Are they taking any initiative? Are they making any efforts? It doesn’t reflect on us in practice. That is to say, they want and expect Rêber Apo to do whatever they want without changing anything. This won’t happen.

No one should say that the PKK is against it. There is nothing like that. The movement and the people as a whole are following the process carefully. But those who make these calls, those who want something to happen, are not doing what it requires. Rêber Apo said that if conditions are created, if opportunities are created, if the torture and isolation system of Imrali is abandoned, if he reaches free living and working conditions, he can play a role. What can he do in the current situation? How will he make a statement? He cannot say anything. What he says cannot be published in its current state; anyone who publishes it is committing a criminal offense. He will be arrested; they are even confiscating Rêber Apo’s prison writings. In that respect, there is no effort from their side. However, practice is necessary. If those who make these calls and create optimism are serious, then they must also take the practical steps that their words require. They must create the conditions for Rêber Apo to be able to speak in the DEM Party’s group. They must pave the way for him to do politics. They must provide him with the conditions to live and work freely. Put an end to the torture and isolation system of Imrali.

We are not saying that everything is negative, but especially those who make these calls, those who are responsible for this, if they really want to change something, then they must take the practical steps required by it.

Other than that, it is a struggle. The Kurdish people and their international friends have developed a struggle within the global freedom campaign for the physical freedom of Rêber Apo and the solution to the Kurdish question. This must continue in all four parts of Kurdistan and all over the world. There must not be the slightest weakness. Through struggle, those who speak words but do not fulfill their promises can be forced to take steps in practice. It is clear that everything is won and created through struggle. We must struggle, we must struggle more, and we must struggle with more creative methods in order to achieve the necessary results.

Of course, the global freedom campaign has already brought important results. We predicted that this would be the case. We said that there would be lasting developments in line with the goals of the freedom campaign. The way is paved for this. But in order to realize it, we must struggle more, struggle more widely, and struggle more effectively. I salute all those who are participating in this once again and call on our people and international friends to further strengthen this struggle.

Why is this happening now? There has been a similar point before, but back then the Turkish government opted for escalation – what’s the difference today?

Fifteen to twenty years ago, when the legal process was going on, when Rêber Apo was making defenses, he evaluated these situations in his prison writings. He listed individually what would happen if this or that step was taken. And what do we see today? That it has happened exactly as he said at the time. No one should approach Imrali lightly. The simple words of some simple people have no value. People are gradually realizing this. There are some lumpen people who try to create confusion and chaos. There is no point in that.

How did this happen? We are struggling. The PKK, under the leadership of Rêber Apo, has fought for this cause for more than fifty years. To change this mentality and policy and the system it has led to. It was the anti-Kurdish, fascist, colonialist, genocidal mentality and politics. It has been more than forty years since we have been waging a war for freedom without interruption. Now we have entered the 10th year of the total fascist, genocidal special war attacks of the AKP administration on the basis of their so-called ‘Collapse Plan‘. Against these, we, as a movement for freedom and as a people, waged total resistance. Those who prepared the plan and tried to put it into practice could not achieve their goals, and they themselves collapsed. The fascist AKP-MHP government that tried to implement it came to the point of collapse. Whatever it did, by marketing all the means of Turkey, by getting support from everywhere, from NATO, China, and Russia, from everywhere, by using all kinds of weapons, by ignoring all rules of law and morality, by committing thousands of war crimes, it still failed in its attacks.

The heroic Kurdish guerrillas in Zap, Metina, and Avashin, the Medya Defense Areas, and all over Kurdistan gave the greatest examples of heroic resistance in history. Kurdish women and youths fight day and night with great consciousness and organization. The Kurdish people and their international friends have been in a struggle in the four parts of Kurdistan and abroad. Since October 10, 2023, this struggle has been a planned action based on the physical freedom of Rêber Apo and the solution of the Kurdish question. The result was breaking the absolute isolation as it completed its first year and entered its second year. Seeing that it was collapsing, the forces turned to look for a way out. MHP chair Devlet Bahceli was at the forefront of this. Because he is the one who led the war. This is quite clear and understandable. People were wondering why the initiative came from Bahceli. It wasn’t going to come from the rent-seekers, it was going to come from whoever was fighting. He fought, got no results, became desperate, and now he is looking for another solution. This is one dimension of it. They have no more power to continue these attacks. They are not in a position to achieve their goals.

One also cannot forget that these are the results of the Third World War that has been going on in the Middle East for 35 years. This war is always the subject of evaluation. It started with the Gulf crisis, and after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the US, on the basis of the strategy of the New World Order, has been carrying out attacks for nearly twenty years to seize the Gulf and establish control over it. For more than ten years, almost fifteen, they have been carrying out attacks to establish control in the Eastern Mediterranean. The war takes place between the forces of the global monopolist capitalist system and the nation state forces of the status quo in the region that emerged out of the First World War. It started with the fall of the Baath government in Iraq, the center of status quo, and on October 7, 2023, with the war in Gaza, it reached a new stage. After that, it was more or less obvious how developments would unfold, because those who carried out these attacks had already declared their goals beforehand. They had called it the Greater Middle East Project and made many statements, but they did not fill in their words, and many things remained vague. Then there was the announcement in the course of the G20 summit in India. A new energy and trade route from India to Greece was announced to be built. And so it started to take concrete shape. First they took control of the Gulf, around Saudi Arabia. Then they started taking control of the Eastern Mediterranean under the leadership of Israel. One could say that they are cleaning the road. They neutralized Hamas in this course, and we said at the time that Lebanon would follow and that Syria would come next. Because they had declared that it would be part of their road project. And it really happened like that. When the first year was completed, there was the war with Lebanon-Hezbollah. It was indeed a surprising war. Everyone expected that war to be much longer, but Hezbollah was dealt a very heavy blow in a very short time. Israel, which had the full support of the US and Europe, was very well prepared and struck effectively. When Hezbollah suffered a heavy blow, it was a blow to Iran as well. When Trump won the November 6 elections, the US administration had the ground for a deal with Russia. They made the necessary agreement in three weeks. 20 days after the US election, they launched the attack on the Assad regime from Aleppo. And in a week, the Syrian Baath government fell and collapsed.

After the First World War, the Arab pillar of the nation state status quo in the Middle East collapsed. And now only Turkey and Iran are left. Turkey and Iran were already the regional hegemonic powers of this status quo. So, now it is the turn of the destruction of the Turkish and Iranian nation-state status quo. The system will turn against them and attack them. Iran already feels this closely and is trying to develop measures accordingly. Turkey’s deep state leadership has also sensed this. Devlet Bahceli, saying that the question of the survival of the state had come to the fore, started these discussions on October 1st. He made calls regarding internal unity and said that in any other way Turkey would collapse. That was true. Turkey will indeed collapse if it does not change itself, if it does not democratize, if it does not solve its problems.

Just as the Arab nation states collapsed, the fate of the Turkish Republic will be no different. The only thing that can prevent this is democratization, and that goes via the solution of the Kurdish question. Therefore, calls were made to Rêber Apo for unity, and he was accepted as an interlocutor. We attach importance to this. To be so outspoken all of a sudden, coming from a party and its chairman like Devlet Bahceli, the chairman of the MHP, who led the genocidal war against the Kurds ideologically and militarily in the first place. But the question is what the result will be.

We said that those who oppose this in Iraq would be dealt with, and Cyprus would be next, and it was. The islands are being discussed, and there are already discussions on Cyprus. Turkey has taken a stance against this. They appointed a trustee in the Mediterranean. This is also connected with this process. The appointment of trustees in Akdeniz at such a time is also connected to the fact that it is Cyprus’ turn. They are looking for a measure; they cannot stay. But the connection to Cyprus is through Mersin. They want to consolidate the front line or the position. They are preparing for war, according to themselves. Of course, that won’t produce a solution. There is no solution to that.

This is how this process has come to the agenda for those who govern Turkey. Will they approach it correctly? Will they make enough correct assessments? Will they be able to show political flexibility to solve the problems? Will the democratic forces be able to lead the process? We will see this in the near future. Rêber Apo also took the initiative here.