Sezgin says gov't and BDP should have dialogue to solve Kurdish problem

Sezgin was referring to recent operations in which several suspected Kurdish Communities Union, Turkey Council (KCK/TM) members were detained in various cities, among them the mayors of several Kurdish-populated provinces.

“This KCK operation is different to the previous ones because there are nine mayors who have been detained. These are elected people. And those detentions come at a time when the BDP [Peace and Democracy Party] was established to continue looking for a solution to the Kurdish problem in Parliament,” he said. “Apparently, pro-status quo forces do not want a solution. Those detentions will lead to more street protests.”

Asked about the government's role in the detentions, Sezgin said that he would like to believe the operations have been conducted despite the government by pro-status quo forces. He added that the recent operation was aimed at intimidating the BDP.

The BDP, which the deputies of the now-defunct DTP joined early last week, denounced Thursday's operation against suspected KCK/TM members at a press conference in İstanbul on Friday. A group of BDP members also slammed government efforts for their democratization initiative to settle the years-long Kurdish question.

For the last Monday Talk of the year, Sezgin, who has high hopes of a solution to the Kurdish issue, answered our questions on this problem, which is likely to remain among the hot topics for debate in 2010.

What do you see ahead in regards to the continuation of the Kurdish initiative following the closure of the DTP?

We have passed the first phase in that regard. The first phase started with prime minister's announcement that he will address the Kurdish issue, and it ended with the closure of the DTP. There have been many negatives and positives in that process. First of all, the Kurdish issue has been comprehensively and intensively discussed for the first time in Turkish history. It has come to Parliament for the first time. But the closure of the DTP has not been good. In addition, the position of the CHP [Republican People's Party] against the Kurdish initiative has been a negative element in the process. The process has also been negatively influenced by the street protests.

What is your evaluation of the second phase, as you call it? Where do the sides stand? Do they have new positions?

The most important step at this stage would be the re-evaluation of actions by all sides in the conflict. The government, for example, should review its actions to find out its past mistakes in the process.

What do you think those mistakes are?

Initially, the government tried a method of trial and error in solving the Kurdish problem. They brought part of the problem related to the Kurdish issue into the public sphere and observed how much reaction it received. But it did not work since there was a great resistance spearheaded by the opposition CHP and MHP [Nationalist Movement Party]. The government should give up this method. Instead, it should tackle the problems and work toward solving them. The government should also draw lessons from its past experience with the DTP. And it should work toward establishing a dialogue with the newly formed BDP. This dialogue should be sustainable because otherwise tensions will continue.

What do you think the BDP members should do in the new period?

They should be part of the solution to the problem. They should only seek a solution inside Parliament. Their attitude should be reconciliatory.

‘Öcalan factor important'

Is this easy for them to do?

It is not easy. There is the factor of Abdullah Öcalan [the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)] in İmralı Prison. He was meddling with the affairs of the DTP, and he will do the same with the BDP. Turkey was waiting for a condemnation from the DTP regarding the PKK. But there was no point in waiting. The important thing is to watch the political line of the BDP.

Following the ruling on the closure of the DTP, its deputies first talked about going back to their people and leaving Parliament. But then they changed this attitude and decided to continue under the roof of the BDP. How did they come to that decision?

There are a few factors. One is Öcalan's attitude. Before the closure of the DTP, Öcalan had said that the deputies would continue with another party. After the DTP deputies decided to leave Parliament, Öcalan clarified his message about the DTP deputies' need to stay in Parliament. Another factor is the demand from most of their voters. Therefore, the DTP deputies took into consideration those two factors and decided to stay in Parliament.

How do you think Öcalan came to the conclusion that the DTP deputies should remain in Parliament?

Öcalan had talks with Justice Ministry officials to get better living conditions in his prison environment. He was given an extra window and promised a television. As his conditions improved, his attitude has changed positively in the last couple of weeks. He also said that he is not against the government's democratic initiative but that he is against the way it has been handled.

Enver Sezgin, an intellectual who writes on the Kurdish problem He was born in Kurtalan in the southeastern province of Siirt. He went to high school and university in Batman. In the second half of the 1970s, he was involved in the Turkish Communist Party (TKP). He was in hiding for 10 years because of the military regime and its undemocratic repercussions in Turkey. He was among the founders of the Socialist Unity Party (SBP) in 1991. In the early '90s, he worked actively in Cem Boyner's widely respected New Democracy Movement (YDH), which later became a political party. Sezgin has written his memoirs, titled “Batman Bolşoy” and has another book, “Çözümün Şafağında Kürt Sorunu” (The Kurdish Problem at the Dawn of a Solution), based on his interviews with writer Mustafa Akyol. He is working on another book on the Kurdish problem predating 1980, this time based on his interviews with İhsan Aksoy, founder of the Turkish Kurdistan Socialist Party.

And he was critical of Duran Kalkan, who is responsible for PKK militants, over a PKK attack in the Reşadiye district of Tokat claiming the lives of seven soldiers in early December.

Yes. He told his lawyers that he could not understand the motivation behind the Reşadiye attack. He has also been critical of the DTP leaders in that regard. He had criticized the PKK leader Cemil Bayık in the past. But he was harsher in his criticism of Kalkan as he said he had no idea what Duran is doing and what his goal is.

What do we understand from this? Are there leaders in the PKK who disregard Öcalan?

Öcalan's fears that some people in the PKK could eliminate him have increased. For some time, Öcalan has been creating a support base for himself in urban areas. He has established such a base in cities. Öcalan no longer depends on armed PKK forces in the mountains. He uses them only as a deterrent.

Do you see a possibility that one day Öcalan will be a legitimate negotiating party in Turkey's Kurdish problem?

There need to be some distinctions made. The Kurdish issue is separate from having people come back home from the mountains. Regarding Öcalan's circumstances and for having people come back home from the mountains, having a dialogue with Öcalan could be helpful. But considering a solution to the Kurdish problem is about basic human rights. In order to have education in Kurdish in Turkey or to restore the original names of towns, you don't need to negotiate with anyone.

‘Initiative will continue, steps from gov't needed'

Do you think the Kurdish initiative might come to a halt?

There is no turning back from the initiative. Either the government will pursue the initiative further, or there will be a civil war or military intervention. A military coup is a remote possibility.

Why?

Because the conditions for a military coup are not present, either in Turkey or in the world. A civil war is also unlikely because it would greatly harm the country. Turks and Kurds live together and interact much more than before. They are not on opposite fronts. The possibility of civil war is too risky to take. Turkey has its back to the wall regarding the Kurdish issue. And it should start solving the problems by giving them priority.

For example?

For example, there need to be moves in Kurdish-language education. The government should allow the Kurdish language to be used in public education. The first step could be to offer Kurdish language classes as electives. Secondly, the original Kurdish names of towns should be restored. Thirdly, the people in the mountains should return home with an amnesty, a PKK amnesty. Those three steps would be very helpful.

Members of the DTP were not pleased with the government's steps. Is there a reason to believe that the BDP will be happy with the government's initiatives?

The members of the new party should learn lessons from what has happened during the DTP period. Expressions like “the initiative is over” are not helpful to the solution of the Kurdish problem. The government is trying to solve the problem, whether it has deficiencies or not. It wants to take some steps. The BDP should take this into consideration. They can criticize the government, bring more suggestions and offer some other solutions, but saying that there is no initiative is not helpful at all. The new party's members should be engaged in dialogue with the government, and they should abandon the attitude of all or nothing.

‘No doves against hawks'

Banning moderates like Ahmet Türk and Aysel Tuğluk from politics has been criticized. Do you think the harsh voices left in the legal political sphere will be able to establish the dialogue that you mentioned?

Even though banned from politics, moderate voices will still have an influence in politics. And there are a lot of people who want peace among the ones who are left in the legal arena. The situation is not like doves against hawks. There might be different voices, different mentalities. It is obvious that Ahmet Türk and Emine Ayna have differing mentalities. Besides that, there is a political line.

Could you talk about this political line in more detail? What is it about, exactly?

That is the political line of Abdullah Öcalan who spearheaded the Kurdish movement for years. It is the line of the PKK. That line has changed over the years, but it has always been there. This political line will not change depending on who is in a pro-Kurdish party or who is not. It will be the same for the new party. This is a fact that won't go away.

It seems like the reactions to that line in Turkish society will continue. What would change that course?

The most important thing to do will be to accept the organic ties between the Kurdish party and the PKK and try to bring their policies to an acceptable position.

Do you think the new party can also come to the brink of closure under the circumstances?

This is possible, of course. But the new party should be careful in its policies in order to not come close to that point. We have seen how the process was damaged when there were big celebrations, as if there had been a victory, when a group of people from the Makhmour refugee camp [in northern Iraq] returned to Turkey. On the other hand, the government should work on laws to make party closures difficult. If there is going to be victory in the end, everybody will win. There are no enemies. Turks and Kurds always say that they are “brothers.” There might be problems between brothers, but not animosity. Problems can be overcome with dialogue. In a large part of Turkish society, the thinking is that Kurds will be given privileges, but the real issue is about being equal. When we are equals, we can have a dialogue.