After Abdullah Öcalan’s “Call for Peace and a Democratic Society” on February 27, the 12th Congress of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) convened and adopted a series of historic decisions, including the dissolution of the Party. Since then, international support has continued to grow for both Öcalan’s historic call and the decisions made at the PKK’s 12th Congress.

The congress resolutions have been widely interpreted as significant steps toward a peaceful and democratic solution to the Kurdish question. At the same time, calls are being made for the Turkish state to take concrete and inclusive steps toward a resolution. We spoke to Professor Yann Moulier-Boutang, founder of Multitudes magazine, member of the Scientific Committee of the United European Left (UEF) in France, and retired professor of economics, about the significance of the recent developments.

Prof. Moulier-Boutang recently made his support public in a message to the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), expressing solidarity with Abdullah Öcalan’s historic call and the PKK’s 12th Congress decisions.

DEM Party holds a significant place in Turkish politics

Professor Moulier-Boutang stated that it was through Abdullah Öcalan’s initiatives that a peace process was launched in Turkey, and he emphasized the important role played by the DEM Party in that process.

He said, “The DEM Party is an important political party in Turkish politics. On issues such as women’s rights and minority rights, it aligns, at least from our perspective as Europeans, with what we consider to be a true leftist stance. Despite all the repression and baseless accusations, it plays a key political role in trying to expand democratic space in Turkey. It is a serious opposition party with the potential to defeat Erdoğan’s party. With the dissolution of the PKK, the time has come to end all accusations directed at the DEM Party.”

Prof. Moulier-Boutang stressed that the peace process with the Kurds is highly significant for Turkey’s European Union (EU) membership aspirations and added: “Turkey is still officially a candidate for EU membership. But as the regime becomes increasingly authoritarian, the prospect of actual accession becomes more distant. That’s the first point. The second is this: in my view, the degradation of Turkey’s parliamentary, democratic, and representative process worsens the further the country is pushed away from EU candidacy. I believe the only solution to the problem in Turkey is for the country to have a real, even time-limited, prospect of joining the European Union. However, since 2016, the Turkish regime has increasingly taken steps toward a form of non-liberal democracy. By this I mean a country where elections technically exist, but in practice do not; where opposition parties exist, but are suppressed.

There is real opposition power in the country, but at the same time, the opposition suffers from fragmentation on the left. Because of this division, it has not seemed likely that the Erdoğan regime could be brought down through democratic means. In this sense, I believe that the peace campaign led by the DEM Party is both important and intelligent. It is acting wisely and doing what needs to be done.”

Turkey’s EU membership would help solve many problems

Professor Yann Moulier-Boutang stated that Turkey’s accession to the European Union would hold significant importance and continued: “I believe it is vitally important for Europe to establish and maintain a connection with Turkey. Perhaps my perspective is somewhat unusual, but when you look at the map, you still see several countries that are not part of the European Union. Leaving aside Switzerland, which is indirectly included and the United Kingdom, which has left temporarily, when you look at Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, and the broader former Yugoslav and Asian geography, you see that this region, as Bosnia and Herzegovina illustrates, has hosted a historical Muslim presence in Europe since the Middle Ages. This presence has, over time, created religious and sometimes ethnic minorities that, in some places, have become majorities.

This is exactly where the European Union project starts to fall short. Similarly, while Europe struggles with minority groups stemming from Maghreb migration, Central Europe also hosts minorities of Mashriq or Turkish origin and has failed to resolve these issues. At its core, Muslims are still seen as an excessively small minority that must eventually assimilate or disappear. The ultimate form of integration is, in many cases, conversion. What France is doing today is actually similar to what European Catholics did to Protestants for centuries: creating minorities that are expected to vanish.

In a highly centralized country like France, people talk about integration, but what the government and much of society really imagine is a more ‘reasonable’ form of assimilation. Yet for various reasons, minorities tend to resist such assimilation regimes. In Europe, especially in Eastern Europe and the former Yugoslav territories, these tensions and conflicts have been partly resolved after centuries, but the issues still persist. Turkey has Kurdistan and the Kurdish people. Europe has religious minorities rooted in Islam, and the status of both remains extremely unclear. In my view, integrating Turkey into the European Union, which I have always supported, is a way to create balanced communities across the continent: Protestant Northern Europe, Catholic Southern Europe, parts of Central Europe with Muslim populations, and other regions with Slavic peoples.

Such balances of power encourage democratic solutions. As far as I know, Turkey applied for EU membership in 1966. Following that application, there was real momentum for a broad democratic reform project within Turkey. But in the past fifteen years, we have moved in exactly the opposite direction, toward an authoritarian and dangerously illiberal regime. That is why the Kurdistan issue, and what it represents for the entire Middle East, is so important to us as Europeans. I am totally opposed to the nationalists in my own country. I do not believe nation-states are the answer anymore. That’s why I identify not as a confederalist, but as a European federalist. And that is why Mr. Öcalan’s call resonated with me, because I stand on the same line, together with my colleagues, from a European perspective.”

PKK’s dissolution is a timely and strategic decision

Professor Yann Moulier-Boutang emphasized the significance of the 12th Congress decisions of the PKK for the peace process and stated: “Both sides must come to terms with the fact that armed struggle and war cannot lead to a long-term solution. For this reason, abandoning armed struggle, dissolving the party, and taking advantage of the extraordinary developments currently unfolding across the Middle East may, for the first time, be a decision made at the right time. Therefore, for those who are not part of the PKK, whether Kurdish, Turkish, or otherwise, this path toward resolution appears to be a very reasonable approach.

I do not know the Kurdish issue in all its details, and for that reason, I cannot say anything definitive about the PKK’s current identity. But I can see that a party like the DEM Party, which leans left, is an institutional force, and currently holds the position of the third largest party in Turkey’s parliament, has understood that this is the right moment to reshuffle the political cards.

As a European, I believe this process must be supported. And we must not forget that these developments have many implications: for many years, Turkey served as a balancing point, both symbolically and practically, between the Arab world and Israel. We are truly at a historical turning point. My stance is to support this initiative.”

Öcalan’s release would be a strong message to Europe

Professor Yann Moulier-Boutang stated that a democratic resolution of the Kurdish question would strengthen relations between Turkey and the European Union. Moulier-Boutang said, “A peaceful resolution of the Kurdish issue would also send a strong signal in the context of Turkey’s relationship with the European Union. A democratic solution to the Kurdish question would provide a solid foundation for Turkey to once again approach the door of the European Union, under appropriate conditions. Such a development would also be welcomed by a significant segment of European public opinion.

Naturally, any democratic step, such as holding fair elections, ensuring their transparency, and guaranteeing freedom of expression, would be seen as a positive sign. For example, the release of Abdullah Öcalan after decades of imprisonment would be perceived as a meaningful gesture for a Turkey turning toward Europe. I believe this could lead to the emergence of strong supporters who once again advocate for Turkey’s European Union membership, which is unfortunately something very few people support today. And that, to me, is deeply regrettable.”

The EU has the right to be involved in the process

Moulier-Boutang concluded his remarks by underlining the institutional responsibility of the European Union to take part in the peace process. He said, “Given the current positions of the United States and Russia, I do not have high expectations from the United Nations. However, from an institutional perspective, the European Union has the authority to be involved, because it is directly connected to the issue. Turkey has not withdrawn its application for membership. It is still officially a candidate.

Therefore, the European Union has a duty to engage with this matter at an institutional level. It is also clear that there are numerous zones of instability not only around Turkey but within Europe itself. Part of this instability is directly related to what we might call Europe’s 'Muslim flank,' and to Turkey’s role as a bridge between the Middle East and Europe. This bridge role also links to the Black Sea region and to pivotal issues such as Ukraine. All of these factors place Turkey in an extremely strategic position.”

Who is Yann Moulier-Boutang?

Yann Moulier-Boutang is a French economist, author, and academic born in 1949. He is the founder and editor-in-chief of the journal Multitudes and is considered a prominent theorist on the transformation of capitalism. He is particularly known for developing the concept of “cognitive capitalism” (capitalisme cognitif). Moulier-Boutang has long been active in green politics and leftist intellectual movements and has taught at various universities in France and internationally.