As the mystery on the east of the Euphrates is resolved

Serious developments have been taking place over the past couple of weeks in Diyarbakır. The number of skulls and bones discovered so far during restoration works in Diyarbakır’s İçkale region, which currently hosts the Diyarbakır prison and the courthouse, and is where the anti-terrorism center and intelligence unit of the gendarmerie (JİTEM) was once located in downtown Diyarbakır has reached 19. Motions had been filed before to conduct excavation works in the area, but the prosecutors’ office refused them. This is how divine justice manifests itself through surprises.

Likewise, as part of an investigation carried out by the Diyarbakır Specially Authorized Prosecutors’ Office, another significant step was taken last week. In the excavation works conducted on vacated land adjacent to the Yağızoymak Gendarmerie Brigade Command in Şırnak-Güçlükonak, the bones of three bodies buried with their clothes on were found. Three out of five people who disappeared after they were taken into custody by military officers in 1994 for allegedly aiding the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Özbaşağaoğlu village were identified by their relatives by their clothes.

Part of the media has tried to ignore these extremely important developments related to solving murders like they did when the Ergenekon documents were revealed. They are ignoring such developments again, paying little attention and trying to distract people away from them. However, they will soon cover these events just like they did with the Ergenekon and Hrant Dink cases.

The PKK-Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) front has adopted a similar attitude held by the media that serves the interests of the guardianship. They are silent too, but why?

They are silent because if the darkness on the east side of the Euphrates is illuminated, the nature of the PKK and its connections with the deep state will be discovered. Most importantly, the Justice and Development Party (AK Party), which has played a significant role and showed political prudence in this process, will attract the attention of the people in the region. This raises concerns for the PKK-BDP front. In addition, as long as the unsolved murders remain on the agenda, executions carried out by the PKK against its own will be questioned. The PKK’s biggest fear is the possibility that its legitimacy will be questioned. The greatest danger for the PKK is the awakening of the Kurdish conscience. The Ergenekon cases have raised awareness among the Turks. It is now time for the Kurds’ awareness to be raised.

There is an important development with regards to this awakening: Two Kurdish politicians have testified to a sub-committee set up as part of the parliamentary commission on human rights and reviewed what happened in the region. Kemal Burkay, who returned to Turkey after three decades of voluntary exile, said the PKK was created by the deep state in 1977, that it fell under Syrian control and that Abdullah Öcalan was directed after he was captured by commanders who were members of Ergenekon.

Burkay further argued that the PKK was established and financed by the state in 1977 in an attempt to undermine the influence of other organizations. Burkay, who underlined that the PKK was a state-run project, stressed that it had committed crimes in Turkey as well as in Europe against Kurds. Burkay also said, “Many Kurdish politicians and intellectuals were murdered by the PKK in Europe.”

Kurdish politician İbrahim Güçlü made the following remarks to the commission:

“I do not agree with the notion of deep state. I agree that the PKK was created by the Kemalist state. The problem is not just Ergenekon. If Ergenekon is controlled by the second or third level hierarchy of the deep state, I see that the Kemalist state engages with the PKK on the first level. The PKK and Ergenekon are controlled from the same center.”

The tough times for supporters of the guardianship are actually about to begin now.