Ocalan Declares End to Armed Struggle, Paving Way for Democratic Politics
According to the International Desk of Webangah News Agency, Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), has issued a message from his prison on Imrali Island in Turkey, declaring that the preceding phase has demonstrated sufficient power and capability for negotiation. Ocalan emphasized that negotiation will ensure a transition from the politics of violence and separatism to democratic politics and integration. He characterized the party’s decisions to dissolve itself and end its armed struggle strategy as more than just a formal or practical step, stressing that the conclusion of the armed struggle signifies a cleansing of the mind from violence and a preference for political solutions.
The PKK leader announced the dissolution of his party and the end of the armed struggle strategy as a declaration of intellectual reconciliation with the republic. He stated that Turks cannot be imagined separately from Kurds, nor Kurds from Turks. Ocalan added that the foundational texts during the republic’s establishment underscored the Turkish-Kurdish unity. His call on February 27 was an effort to revive the spirit of unity and a demand for a democratic republic.
Underscoring the transition from a negative phase to a period of positive construction, he expressed that a door is opening to a new era and political strategy, with the aim of closing the chapter of violence-based politics. Ocalan further noted that the objective in positive construction is not to seize any institution but for every individual in society to reach a level of responsibility. He also pointed out that oppressed groups and ethnic, religious, and cultural communities can preserve their creativity through democratic struggle.
The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) had previously announced on May 12, 2025, that it was dissolving its organizational structure, bringing an end to four decades of armed conflict with the Turkish state. The party’s statement indicated that activities carried out in the name of the PKK would cease, and Kurdish political parties would assume responsibility for developing Kurdish democracy. The decision to dissolve the group followed Ocalan’s call in February for disarmament, a move assessed as a turning point in the political developments concerning the Kurdish issue in Turkey.
