The Law on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integration, which regulates the liquidation of the PKK, which laid down arms in the Terror-Free Türkiye process, came into force yesterday with the approval of President Tayyip Erdoğan. The Board, which will carry out the detection and confirmation stages, will hold its first meeting on Monday, August 24, under the chairmanship of Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz. Yılmaz stated that they will first form subcommittees and work hard to fulfill all responsibilities in the law.
President Erdoğan signed the law, which was submitted for approval on Tuesday, August 11, the previous night and sent it to the Official Gazette. The law came into force after being published in yesterday's issue of the Official Gazette. In his statement on his social media account, Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz announced that the Board under his chairmanship, as defined in the law, was formed as of yesterday. Yilmaz gave the following information:
"Our Board member ministers and institutions have also started their work in their areas of responsibility. We plan to hold the first meeting of the Board on Monday, August 24. In this meeting, the working procedures and principles of our Board and the sub-commissions to be formed in line with the needs of the disarmament and termination process will be discussed. In addition, evaluations will be made on the issues that our Board members may bring to the agenda and require coordination between our institutions. Our Board will work in effective coordination for our national unity, brotherhood and peace, and all duties defined by Law No. 7595 and will work hard to fulfill its responsibilities.”
The Board, chaired by the Vice President, consists of the Minister of Justice, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Minister of National Defense, the Secretary General of the Presidency, the Director of the National Intelligence Organization and the Secretary General of the National Security Council. The name of the Board is expected to be announced with the official meeting announcement or the statement regarding the first meeting. In addition to ministers, the Board will be able to invite representatives of relevant public institutions and, when deemed necessary, representatives of civil society, professional associations or opinion leaders, to its meetings and obtain information.
Initiating the "detection and confirmation" phase, the Board will first follow the disarmament processes in the organization and the liquidation of the PKK/KCK structure and its components' activities abroad. The conditions regarding how and by what method the weapons will be laid down will also be determined by the Board. The law provides that "Weapons, ammunition, tools, equipment, explosives and all kinds of materials that members of the organization bring with them or declare are recorded."
With the publication of the MGK decision in the Official Gazette, applications will be received from former members of the liquidated organization and those who were investigated, tried or convicted for crimes related to the organization such as "propaganda, aiding-abetting, affiliation". Upon these applications, judgeships and prosecutors' offices will be able to decide on sentence postponement. The MGK is planned to hold its first ordinary meeting in October. The momentum of the disarmament process will also show whether the report on the Board's findings will be ready in time for the first MGK. Under any circumstances, "those convicted of intentional murder and those sentenced to life imprisonment or aggravated life imprisonment for crimes committed before June 1, 2005" will not benefit from the law.
After the MGK decision, the Board will continue to work six months after applications are received. The Special Board will decide whether to conduct an investigation when a new notice or complaint is received regarding crimes within the scope of the law that were committed before the MGK decision was published in the Official Gazette. The investigation of PKK members who benefit from the postponement of sentence for terrorist crimes they allegedly committed before will depend on the decision of the Board.
Applications for former organization members who want to benefit from the law do not start immediately. When it is determined that the elements of the organization abroad have ceased their activities and the terrorists in the mountain squads have completely laid down their weapons, the Board will issue a report. The report will be evaluated at the MGK. If the process takes place as planned, the MGK will decide that "it has been confirmed by the security institutions that the PKK/KCK terrorist organization and all its related entities have ended their actual existence and handed over all kinds of weapons and ammunition under their control." The decision will be submitted to the Presidency. The President will send it to the Official Gazette by decree.
