SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region — The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) confirmed on Friday that it successfully held its 12th congress between May 5 and 7 in the Medya Defense Zones, located in the mountains of the Kurdistan Region. The PKK stated that comprehensive details and official documents regarding the outcomes and decisions of the congress will be shared with the public soon.
In its statement, the PKK announced that the congress was convened in response to a historic call from its imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan on February 27. During the congress, Ocalan’s views and proposals were read and evaluated. Representatives from all areas of the organization participated in the congress, which was held across two separate locations.
“The outcomes and decisions of the 12th PKK Congress, along with detailed information and documents, will be shared with the public very soon,” read the PKK’s statement.
The PKK also reiterated its call for the “physical freedom” of their leader, Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned at Turkey’s Imrali Prison since 1999.
Ocalan had previously called for the disarmament and dissolution of the group in a letter released on February 27. He took full responsibility for the decision, attributing it to support from Turkish political leaders, including Devlet Bahceli, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and other parties involved in Turkey’s new peace process.
On Thursday, Turkish President Erdogan declared that all obstacles had been overcome, stating, “Today, tomorrow, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) will lay down its arms and dissolve,” marking what he described as “a new process, a new era” for everyone.
Just an hour before the PKK’s announcement about convening its congress, Aysegul Dogan, spokesperson for the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), remarked that the PKK could announce the convening of its disarmament and dissolution congress “at any moment.”
In response to the PKK’s announcement about holding its anticipated congress, Pervin Buldan, a Pro-Kurdish DEM Party MP and member of the Imrali delegation, welcomed the PKK’s 12th congress, stating, “Now the real foundations of peace will be laid. Congratulations to all of us.” She also added, “I only wish the late Sırrı Sureyya Onder could have witnessed this day.”
DEM Party also welcomed the PKK’s 12th congress aimed at deciding on disarmament and dissolution, calling it a step toward the horizon of peace after five decades of conflict.
In a statement, the party urged the Ankara and all democratic institutions to take responsibility for resolving the Kurdish issue and advancing real democratization in Turkey.
Founded in 1978, the PKK is a Kurdish group that has waged an armed insurgency against Turkey, advocating for greater Kurdish autonomy and a broader vision of Greater Kurdistan. The group is designated as a “terrorist organization” by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union.