"The 'peace envoys' sent by the PKK are a positive step along the path of peace, but they should not have been so provocative," the outgoing Kurdish Prime Minister Barzani told reporters in the regional capital of Arbil.
He was referring to the jubilation in predominantly Kurdish areas over the people who “returned home” through the Habur border crossing last week. Last Monday eight members of the PKK and 26 people from the Makhmur refugee camp, which is considered by Ankara to be a hotbed for the PKK, turned themselves in to Turkish security forces. After the initial interrogations, they were released and received a festive welcome, leading to criticism from many segments of society, including the government and opposition parties.
The group turned themselves in at the behest of PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, who is serving a life sentence on İmralı Island in the Sea of Marmara. He urged the return of groups from the Kandil Mountains, where the PKK has a camp, from the Makhmur refugee camp and from Europe.
Stating that the PKK should not adopt a defiant attitude, which could halt the resolution process and would be exploited by enemies of the Kurds, Barzani said he was satisfied by the Turkish government's move to release the surrendered PKK members. “We hope this project will continue to try and resolve the Kurdish problem in Turkey,” he said, referring to the Turkish government's democratic initiative to settle the Kurdish issue.
The government has decided to halt the return of individuals linked to the PKK for a time in order to reassess the democratization process due to agitation among various segments of society. The PKK also declared over the weekend that they will not send additional groups to surrender to authorities.
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