Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) is set to meet with Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç next week to explore possible legal reforms, signaling what party officials are calling a “new phase” in the long-stalled Kurdish peace process.
The announcement comes on the heels of a landmark meeting on Thursday between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and DEM Party lawmakers Pervin Buldan and Sırrı Süreyya Önder, the first direct engagement between Erdoğan and members of the so-called “İmralı delegation” since peace talks collapsed in 2015.
In a televised interview Saturday, Buldan described the meeting as “constructive” and said upcoming discussions with the justice minister would address issues such as prison conditions, the legal status of gravely ill inmates, and potential changes to the conditions of Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
The talks follow Öcalan’s February 2025 call for the PKK to disband, which was followed by a unilateral PKK ceasefire on March 1. Despite this, the Turkish government has not formally acknowledged Öcalan’s statement or the ceasefire, and military operations against PKK targets continue in northern Iraq and Syria.
Media reports after the Erdoğan meeting suggested the DEM Party presented a 13-point list of demands, including easing Öcalan’s isolation and ending the government’s trustee appointments in Kurdish-run municipalities. However, DEM Party spokesperson Ayşegül Doğan denied that any formal list was submitted, saying the topics reflected longstanding public concerns rather than official demands.
While Buldan characterized the atmosphere of the April 10 meeting as “constructive” and “hopeful,” no concrete outcomes or timelines have been disclosed. It remains unclear whether the government intends to introduce any legal reforms or whether further high-level negotiations will follow. No official statement has been issued by the presidency or the Ministry of Justice
