Karayılan: Visit to İmralı important – UPDATE

04 January 2013 – ANF – First comments on Thursday’s visit to Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan. Commenting on the visit to İmralı prison, yesterday, by DTK co-chair and independent MP Kürt and BDP MP Ayla Akat, KCK Presidential council member Murat Karayılan said the meeting was important. “Now – he added – the government should make the first step”. On Thursday the two Kurdish deputies went to visit Kurdish leader Öcalan.

Speaking to ANF Murat Karayılan said we are witnessing a sort of “consultation process”. Karayılan listed the practical steps which needs to be taken to ensure the set in motion of a process for the solution of the Kurdish question and warned that “It will be a pity if the government once again tries to delay the process looking for a solution to the PKK issue instead of a solution to the Kurdish question.”

Karayılan commented the recent talks with the Kurdish leader as a very important and appropriate attempt that should be followed very carefully. “It will become clearer in the coming days whether these talks will evolve into a process for the search of a solution”, he added. The KCK president stated that the Turkish state has been holding talks with the Kurdish leader since last November, and  pointed out that the first major step to ensure a solution within this process should be to change Öcalan’s position in Imralı prison.