ANKARA — Turkey’s parliament has approved a long-awaited legal framework intended to support the disarmament and reintegration of members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), advancing President Tayyip Erdogan’s effort to end a conflict that has lasted more than four decades.
The legislation, submitted to parliament by the ruling alliance earlier this week, provides a legal framework for former PKK members and civilians linked to the group to return to Turkey and undergo procedures aimed at reintegration, according to Turkish officials and reporting by Reuters and the Associated Press.
The measure forms part of Ankara’s “terror-free Turkey” initiative, which followed the PKK’s announcement that it would disband and end its armed struggle. The group, which Turkey, the United States and the European Union designate as a terrorist organisation, began its insurgency in 1984.
Under the proposed framework, qualifying former militants who return within a specified period could receive legal protections, including suspended proceedings or sentences, while those accused or convicted of serious crimes such as killings would be excluded. PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned since 1999, is also excluded from the proposed benefits.
The process has been developed through a parliamentary committee established to examine the political and legal consequences of the PKK’s dissolution. The committee approved its broader roadmap in February by 47 votes to two, with one abstention.
Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus has said the legislation should not be regarded as a general amnesty. He described the planned measure as a temporary legal arrangement designed to facilitate the abandonment of weapons and the return of those eligible for reintegration.
Kurtulmus said in July that lawmakers were working to finalize the legislation before parliament’s summer recess and that the framework would include mechanisms for monitoring and oversight.
The initiative follows previous attempts to resolve Turkey’s Kurdish conflict, including a peace process that collapsed in 2015. The conflict has killed more than 40,000 people since 1984, according to Reuters.
The legislation’s approval marks a significant parliamentary step in Ankara’s current peace initiative. Implementation will depend on verification of the PKK’s disarmament and dissolution and on the procedures established under the new framework.
