[OPINION] The Öcalan initiative: peace or a power play?

Adem Yavuz Arslan*

For four decades the conflict between the Turkish state and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has shaped Turkey’s political and social landscape. More than 40,000 people have died. The PKK has moved between armed struggle, political negotiations and regional alliances. Meanwhile, its imprisoned founder, Abdullah Öcalan, has remained a symbolic figure despite being isolated in a prison on İmralı Island since 1999.

Against this backdrop the Turkish Parliament’s decision last week to reveal a state-filtered summary of a new meeting with Öcalan was striking. The government once again presented him as the PKK’s “founding leader,” a sudden shift clearly driven by political motives.

The recent meeting on İmralı brought together three lawmakers, one each from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), its nationalist ally the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party).

They traveled under the authority of the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission, a 51-member body created by parliament to manage political steps after the PKK decision to dissolve and lay down arms it announced in May in line with a call from Öcalan earlier in the year.

A filtered voice from İmralı

The text was described as Öcalan’s own message. In reality, every word from İmralı is controlled by the state. The parliament heard only a short, curated summary. Even so, the rhetoric resembled Öcalan’s language from the 2013–2015 peace process, which collapsed. He rejected an independent Kurdish state, federalism and autonomy for Kurds and instead endorsed a “democratic nation” within Turkey’s unitary structure. He also portrayed himself as the only figure capable of ordering de-escalation or even dissolving the PKK, claiming that earlier attempts were blocked by “deep-state sabotage.”

The new narrative: a ‘dissolved’ PKK

What is new is not Öcalan’s tone but the government’s framing. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his nationalist partners have elevated Öcalan’s symbolic status while spreading the extraordinary claim that the PKK, designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies, is dissolving itself.

This narrative suggests that the Kurdish conflict is nearing an end under Erdoğan’s leadership. Yet realities on the ground point in the opposite direction. Turkey continues to drift into authoritarianism. Kurdish politicians remain behind bars. Elected mayors are removed and replaced by state trustees. Kurdish media and cultural institutions face constant pressure. The gap between peace rhetoric and political reality is widening.

Erdoğan’s constitutional ambition

This contradiction fuels public skepticism. Many believe Erdoğan’s true objective is to secure Kurdish support in parliament for another constitutional amendment. Such a change could allow him to extend his presidency. The pattern is familiar. During the previous peace process, Erdoğan spoke the language of reconciliation while simultaneously strengthening the security state, polarizing society and building the system that enabled his current dominance.

A familiar pattern of political engineering

The same dynamic is visible today. When Kurdish votes are needed, Erdoğan signals openness to dialogue. When nationalist votes matter, repression intensifies. Öcalan’s influence is selectively amplified, while all other Kurdish actors are silenced. What might have been a democratic negotiation becomes a tool of political engineering.

The real question is why Erdoğan wants Öcalan’s filtered voice projected at this moment. For many observers, the answer is clear. This is not a revived peace initiative. It is a calculated move designed to secure and extend Erdoğan’s hold on power.

*Adem Yavuz Arslan is a journalist with over two decades of experience in political reporting, investigative journalism and international conflict coverage. His work has focused on Turkey’s political landscape, including detailed reporting on the 2016 coup attempt and its aftermath, as well as broader issues related to media freedom and human rights. He has reported from conflict zones such as Bosnia, Kosovo and Iraq, and has conducted in-depth research on high-profile cases, including the assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink. Arslan is the author of four books and has received journalism awards for his investigative work. Currently living in exile in Washington, D.C., he continues his journalism through digital media platforms, including his YouTube channel, Turkish Minute, TR724 and X.