The Turkish Parliament's National Solidarity, Brotherhood, and Democracy Committee has decided to send deputies to İmralı Island, where PKK terrorist leader Abdullah Öcalan is imprisoned. It is noted that out of 53 deputies, 32 voted in favor, 30 against, and 3 abstained.
The results of the meeting, as well as the CHP's non-participation in the delegation, are matters of interest.
In a statement to Modern.az, Şamil Ayrım, a member of the ruling Justice and Development Party in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, stated that the government and many parties are taking all necessary steps for lasting peace in Turkey:
“The commission established in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey approximately 3 months ago has held a series of meetings. Following Devlet Bahçeli's idea of going to İmralı and its support by our esteemed President, the leader of the PKK terrorist organization from İmralı was accepted as a party. Consequently, a meeting with the leader of the PKK terrorist organization became necessary.
Whatever is necessary for lasting peace in Turkey, the government and many political parties are trying to take steps. Nearly 100% of our citizens want terrorism to end and resources no longer to be spent on combating terrorism. This is very important for us. There will be certain statements after the meeting; it would not be appropriate to say anything now. However, it is highly probable that several nuances related to future obstacles may be discussed there. Our esteemed President is very determined on this matter. Devlet Bahçeli also maintains a determined stance. The determination of the delegation was important.”
Ş. Ayrım stated that he does not consider the CHP's non-participation in the delegation to be correct:
“The CHP did not provide a deputy for this delegation; 4 parties are going to the meeting. The CHP also has its own reasons. During the fight against terrorism in Turkey over approximately 40-45 years, we lost martyrs. Throughout these years, we called Öcalan a terrorist leader, a child killer. It is not easy to erase these traces all at once. In my opinion, the CHP also prioritized its political stance on this issue. At this stage, I do not consider this to be a correct action. Meetings would have been held. Consequently, following all these meetings, the parliament will adopt certain laws in this direction in the upcoming period. For now, we do not know what the meeting delegation will bring. Considering all this, the CHP, as Turkey's main opposition party, should act more rationally. Also, the question arises: why does the CHP remain part of the established commission until now? There are even statements that they will continue their duties in the commission. However, they are not present on one side of the equation. Therefore, this is naturally the CHP's own decision; I cannot say anything. They will probably explain their reasons for not participating in the meeting themselves.
