Writing in Yeni Özgür Politika Newspaper, KCK (Kurdistan Communities Union) Executive Council Member Mustafa Karasu stated that “now that the elections are approaching, the AKP has come up with the rumour that a solution to the Kurdish question could be found”.

Karasu added: “The most recent Tayyip Erdogan's chief advisors, İlknur Çevik, has gone on record saying that a solution process could begin after the elections, in an attempt to draw Kurdish votes to the AKP. Later, the President's Speaker Abraham Kalin made a statement explaining that in fact this was not the case. There is no doubt, that both men have been made to speak by Tayyip Erdogan. He got İlnur Çevik to soften the Kurdish society, which is very angry with the AKP, with an aim of recuperating some Kurdish votes. And he got Abraham Kalin saying that the government alliance stands solid and Kurds are the enemies”.

Karasu insisted reminding that “from time to time there are rumours about new talks in Imrali [where Kurdish People Leader Abdullah Ocalan is held]. But, said Karasu, all this aims at “confusing the people and fill Kurds with false expectations. So rumours are spread coming from the Palace and the MIT, intelligence services”.

It is a “psychological war to confuse society. - added Karasu - So on one hand, the Kurdish People's Leader is subjected to heavy isolation and psychological pressure; while on the other, it is said that the State is actually talking to Ocalan, so his situation should not be that bad”.

The reality though is different, said Karasu. “The Kurdish People’s Leader has been held in isolation since April 2015. Neither the families nor the lawyers had any contact with him”.

Karasu insisted: “The Kurdish Freedom Movement has repeatedly stated that there have been no talks with Imrali, and that no news has been received. Only a month and a half ago, a source claimed that some contacts were made by the state but that the Kurdish People’s Leader rejected them. The source of this information was doubtful”.

Karasu added: “Everyone should know that there is no news from the Kurdish People’s Leader. There is no contact with the Leader in any way. The relationship has been interrupted altogether. There is, on the contrary, a direct link between the intensified attacks against the Kurdish Freedom Movement and the isolation of the Kurdish Leader. This isolation is used as a psychological pressure on both the PKK and the public. There is, in other words, the clear will to repress and exterminate the Kurdish Freedom Movement. This heavy isolation is maintained as a dimension of the psychological war against the Kurdish people and the Freedom Movement. The Kurdish People’s Leader and the Kurdish Freedom Movement are aware of this”.

Karasu also underlined that “there has never been a solution process in the past. Leader Apo wanted to engage the AKP into a solution process but it didn’t happen. Because the AKP didn’t abandon its genocidal colonialist mindset and policies. For this reason, we have stated that was no solution process even in 2014 and 2015. Should we want to name it, we should say that it was a ‘process of trying to engage the AKP with a solution process’”.

Karasu then added: “A solution process of the Kurdish question should be seen as a process of struggle against the AKP-MHP fascist alliance. Enhancing the fight against the AKP-MHP fascism is the beginning of the solution process. Nothing else can be called a solution process”.

Talking about the 2013, 2014 and 2015 attempts, Karasu said: “At a time when the AKP needed the support of the democratic forces and the Kurds to get into power, it talked about steps towards a solution. The AKP wanted to use this process to strengthen itself, whereas the Kurdish People’s Leader wanted to strengthen the Kurdish Liberation Movement but also convince the AKP to engage in a solution process. It did not happen. The solution to the Kurdish question did not turn into a mentality, so war spread. This is the story of 2013, 2014 and 2015. Those who could not take a step in 2013, 2014 and 2015 for the solution of the Kurdish question are not allowed to take steps in this period”.

The current policies of the AKP are clear, said Karasu: “It wants to crush the Kurdish Freedom Movement and remove it from all four parts of Kurdistan. The alternative is to democratize Turkey. But the AKP-MHP fascism is far from this. More precisely, it is a ruling power that is inversely related to democratization and the solution of the Kurdish question. Waiting for a step from such a power to solve the Kurdish question is to bury one’s head in the sand”.

But, said Karasu: “the Kurdish people have gained an experience. In 2013, 2014 and 2015, the Kurdish Freedom Movement made great sacrifices to engage the AKP into a solution process. Kurds tried to convince the AKP that another way, other than war, was possible to solve the Kurdish question. It did not happen. You cannot be washed twice with the same water. The AKP wants to continue with Kurdish domination and Kurdish genocide policy. In this respect, the fight against the AKP-MHP fascist alliance has become compulsory for the democratization and solution of the Kurdish question. To seek a solution to the Kurdish problem in another field, is to move away from the solution”.

Of course, said Karasu “democratization does not happen immediately by lowering the AKP-MHP power in this coming election. But if this fascist power loses, democratization opens up. In this respect, the June 24 elections should be seen as an important action of democratisation and chance to make Tayyip Erdogan and the AKP fall. First of all, HDP has to enter the parliament in a strong position. When democratic forces in the Assembly and democratic forces outside parliament enter into a common struggle, democratization gets closer. To solve the Kurdish question and call for a solution process is not enough. Apart from the struggle to defeat the AKP-MHP fascist government, seeking a solution to the Kurdish question or putting forward different projects and suggestions means in fact to escape from the solution of the Kurdish question. The process for the solution of the Kurdish question begins by stepping up the struggle. Therefore, the declaration for the solution to the Kurdish question can only be fighting against the AKP-MHP fascism”.