MESOP VIA LEILA ZANA : MESOP : MORE TROUBLE FOR CEMIL BAYIK, SABRI OK & KANDIL – APO PREFERS A GREATER ROLE FOR BARZANI

Öcalan Sends Letter to Barzani – PKK leader asks Barzani and the KRG to play a bigger role in the peace process

Basnews | Karzan Sabah Hawrami – 07.03.2015 – ERBIL – The People’s Democratic Party (HDP) delegates will visit the Kurdistan Region to present a letter from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) jailed leader Abdullah Öcalan to Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani. On Thursday, Kurdish MP in Turkey Laila Zana and Sri Soraya Onder HDP MP, visited Imrali prison to meet Öcalan.

The MPs have reportedly taken a letter from him to deliver to Barzani in the Kurdistan Region on Tuesday. HDP representative in the Kurdistan Region Abid Ike told BasNews about the visit.He said that in their meeting with Barzani, they will talk about topics including the Kurdish National Congress (KNC), the situation in the region and deliver Öcalan’s letter.

“The letter explains that while the KNC began well, its development has stalled. It says that the KNC is important for Kurdish unity and it must continue to develop,” said Ike. He went on, “Disarmament is not the current plan of the PKK and Öcalan. The delegates that went to Imrali agreed with the Turkish government to enforce the demands that have been set by Öcalan. However, f the demands are implemented and Turkey takes serious steps towards peace, then the weapons will be laid down and PKK fighters will retreat from north Kurdistan [Kurdish region in Turkey] to the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.”Ike said that the retreat of the PKK to the Kurdistan Region and staying in the region is important for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). “Öcalan also invited Barzani to visit Amed in Turkey for the Newroz celebration,” he revealed. “When the MPs will visit Barzani in the coming days, they will be accompanied by members of the Newroz celebration committee,” added Ike. BasNews understands that in the meeting they will discuss a larger role that Barzani and KRG could play in the peace process, and the announcement that the PKK might make about disarmament and retreat.