Preliminary talks held on Nov. 10 regarding the issue were marred by the reactions of the opposition parties, which lashed out at the government for bringing the issue to the table on the 71st anniversary of the death of the nation’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) were reluctant to hold a parliamentary session on the Kurdish initiative on Tuesday mostly because deputies would be focused on the commemorations.Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan yesterday held a discussion with several ministers and AK Party officials regarding the Kurdish initiative at the Prime Ministry. Deputy prime ministers Bülent Arınç and Cemil Çiçek, Interior Minister Besir Atalay, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, AK Party Deputy Chairman Hüseyin Çelik, AK Party parliamentary group Deputy Chairman Suat Kılıç and AK Party Adana deputy Ömer Çelik attended yesterday’s meeting.
Yesterday representatives of various nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in the Southeast, who met with Arınç and Agriculture Minister Mehdi Eker on Wednesday, reiterated their support for the government’s Kurdish initiative. A statement released after a meeting of more than 40 NGO representatives said: “Our views may be different but our common goal is the expansion of human rights and freedoms. With this meeting, we have once again proven how we tolerate each other’s views. The statements of state officials regarding the peace process are promising.”
The AK Party government announced its intention to settle the Kurdish question through peaceful methods during the summer, but has not detailed its plan. Though not officially confirmed, it is believed that the government plans to grant broader cultural and political rights to the country’s Kurds and, in this way, to block aid flowing to the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
In today’s session, Prime Minister Erdoğan is expected to address Parliament, giving details about moves planned as part of the Kurdish initiative. Erdoğan is expected to announce a package of 14 to 15 items that include some steps that have already been implemented, such as the opening of eastern language institutes that teach Kurdish and the launch of broadcasts in Kurdish by the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT). Sources also say the prime minister has already directed the Justice Ministry to carry out the necessary work to remove a ban on Kurdish in Turkey’s prisons and jails.
