ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The highly anticipated disarmament ceremony of Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) members, scheduled for Friday, July 11, will not be broadcast live due to security concerns, a spokesperson for Turkey’s main pro-Kurdish party told Rudaw. However, accredited journalists will be allowed to witness the historic event in person.
Aysegul Dogan, spokesperson for the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), told Rudaw’s Hevidar Zana on Tuesday that the decision to avoid live coverage is not unprecedented, referencing similar security protocols taken during a 2013 PKK disarmament process.
“Security is a very important issue, and it is normal for precautions to be taken,” she emphasized.
Despite the absence of a live feed, Dogan confirmed that “journalists accredited by the DEM Party will be granted access to observe the ceremony,” noting that the pro-Kurdish party is one of the key organizers of the event.
Last week, Rudaw learned that the first group of PKK fighters - ranging from 30 to 40 - is set to disarm in the Kurdistan Region’s eastern Sulaimani province.
The Friday event represents a major milestone in a broader, months-long peace initiative led by the DEM Party, which aims to end the four-decade conflict between Kurdish rebels and the Turkish state - a conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives, primarily PKK fighters.
The ceremony also follows the PKK’s announcement in May of its dissolution, responding to a February appeal by their jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan to lay down arms and pursue a political solution for securing Kurdish cultural and political rights.
Calling the upcoming ceremony a “historic step,” Dogan said a high-level DEM Party delegation is expected to attend, alongside representatives from the Democratic Regions Party (DBP), the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), and several parliamentarians. She also indicated a strong likelihood of attending the event herself.
Dogan further shared the DEM Party’s expectation that PKK leader would participate via a video message, stressing that he “should also be able to play an active role in this process. People are curious about his situation, and his group wants clarity on his condition.”
Notably, a pivotal video message from Ocalan - recorded on June 19 - was released Wednesday. In the message, the PKK leader reaffirmed his group’s historic departure from armed struggle and renewed his call for the formation of a legislative commission to oversee the peace process with the Turkish government.
Founded in 1978, the PKK initially sought to establish an independent Kurdish state but has, in recent decades, shifted its focus toward securing greater political and cultural rights for Kurds in Turkey. The PKK is designated a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union.
