ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Region leaders offered their condolences following the death of politician Sirri Sureyya Onder, who played a pivotal role in peace talks between Ankara and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
“The late Onder, both as deputy speaker of the Turkish Parliament and as a member of the Imrali delegation, through his role, efforts, and struggle for the success of the peace process in Turkey, with his dedicated thoughts, actions, and work for peace, brotherhood, and peaceful coexistence, demonstrated a supreme example of peace-seeking and humanitarianism that was respected and appreciated by all,” Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani said in a statement on Saturday.
Onder, 62, was a member of the Turkish parliament on the ticket of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party). He was part of the Imrali delegation that visited jailed PKK leader in his Imrali island prison and is mediating peace talks between the PKK and the Turkish state. His death comes at a pivotal moment in the negotiations.
Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani also expressed his deep condolences, stating, “Onder was a longtime friend of the Kurdish people and a well-known activist in the peace process in Turkey. He played an active and unforgettable role in strengthening brotherhood and harmony between both the Kurdish and Turkish peoples.”
Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani extended his condolences to Onder’s family, colleagues, and supporters, including the DEM Party, and said he shares in their grief.
Onder died of multiple organ failure. His death was announced on Saturday by the hospital where he was receiving treatment after suffering a heart attack.
Kurdistan Region Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani expressed deep sorrow over Onder’s passing and recalled meeting with him recently.
“Two months ago, with a heart full of hope and a face brimming with optimism, he looked toward the peace process and the future of the Kurdish people in Turkey and the region. Unfortunately, death did not give that hopeful heart enough time to see with his own eyes the bright future of coexistence for which he had struggled his entire life,” Talabani said.
Onder was born to a Turkmen family on July 7, 1962 in Adiyaman province. He served as a member of parliament as part of several pro-Kurdish parties. He spent time in jail after the 1980 coup. He was jailed again in 2018 after he was convicted of propaganda for a terrorist organization alongside Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtas, but was released the following year after a court ruled his right to freedom of expression had been violated.
