ANKARA, Turkey, — Speaking with Turkish daily press Milliyet journalist, the Turkish Premier Erdogan mentioned talks with Kurdish national leader Abdulla Ocalan admitting his call’s effectiveness in ending of the hunger strike.
Referring to Mehmet Ocalan’s meeting with his brother the Kurdish national leader last Saturday, Erdogan claimed that Ocalan who has been refusing to see his family so far has himself asked to see his brother this time.
Asked if Ocalan would have sent the same message if he had been enabled to meet his brother earlier, Erdogan said that “Despite the existing problems concerning his meeting with his lawyers, we have always expressed that he could be able to meet his family without facing any legal obstacles. So, his refusal to meet his family earlier wasn’t related with any kind of prevention on our side”.
When asked if the state has agreed anything with Ocalan for his making a call to end the hunger strike, Erdogan said they haven’t promised him anything in this respect and added: “We have meant to solve the Kurdish question since we came into power and we have been addressing the issue from a different perspective since 2005 when we withdrew from the policies of denial and assimilation against Kurds whom we now see and call as our brothers and sisters”.
Erdogan claimed that his AK Party has been investing in the Kurdish region in socio-economic, psychological and diplomatic areas.
When asked if the most recent meeting indicated a new process of talks with Ocalan, Erdogan said: “When he demanded for a meeting, we have enabled it. Talks with Imrali, referring to Ocalan, could re-start again through our main tool, namely the National Intelligence Service. We see no harm in doing this because the major point is to solve the problem”.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Chilean President Sebastian Pinera on Monday, Turkish President Abdullah Gul also expressed his satisfaction for the end of the hunger strike in Turkish prisons without any deaths and said it is time for a Parliamentary debate to speed up efforts for a resolution to Turkey’s decades old Kurdish issue.
Gul claimed that people in Turkey can easily voice even their most extreme opinions and added that problems should be solved without resorting to violence.