Volkswacht Bodensee - Kurdish PKK fighters destroy weapons at disarmament ceremony

The ceremony marked a major step in the transition of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) from armed insurgency to democratic politics, as part of a broader effort to bring an end to one of the region's longest-running conflicts.

Analysts say that with the PKK weakened and the Kurdish public exhausted by decades of violence, Turkey's peace offer handed its jailed founder Abdullah Ocalan a chance to make the long-desired switch away from armed struggle.

The PKK's disarmament also grants President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the distinction of being the Turkish leader who managed to draw a line under a bloody conflict that cost more than 40,000 lives and wrought havoc in Turkey and beyond.

Outside the ancient cave of Casene, a group of 30 PKK fighters, men and women, gathered on a stage in khaki fatigues, their faces uncovered, in front of an audience of around 300 people, an AFP correspondent at the scene said.

One by one, they walked down to lay their weapons in a cauldron in which a fire was lit. Most were rifles but there was one machine gun and a rocket-propelled grenade launcher.

As they looked on, people in the crowd started cheering while others could be heard weeping.

After the ceremony, the fighters returned to the mountains, a PKK commander said.

- 'Ocalan's freedom essential' -

Speaking to AFP after the ceremony, the PKK's top female commander Bese Hozat said that for the process to succeed, it was essential to release Ocalan -- known to his followers as 'Apo' -- who has been serving life in solitary confinement since 1999.

"Ensuring Leader Apo's physical freedom via legal guarantees, is essential... he should be able to freely lead and manage this process. This is our primary condition and demand," she said.

"Without this development, it is highly unlikely that the process will continue successfully."

Erdogan hailed the ceremony as an "important step" on the path to a "terror-free Turkey", expressing hope it would lead to "the establishment of lasting peace in our region".

And a senior Turkish official source described it as a "concrete and welcome step".

"We view this development as an irreversible turning point," he said, adding that the move to decommission weapons was part of a broader five-stage process.

The following steps would involve the legal reintegration of former fighters into society, the establishment of mechanisms for their lawful return and for justice, ensuring accountability and stability.

PKK militants have insisted on the need for legal reform in Turkey to allow them to return home freely and engage in democratic politics, the commander told AFP.

"If Turkey.. enacts laws and implements radical legal reforms.. we will go to Turkey and engage in politics," she said.

"If there is no legal constitutional arrangements, we will either end up in prison or being killed."

The ceremony followed months of indirect negotiations between Ocalan and Ankara that began in October with Erdogan's blessing, and were facilitated by Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM party.

The PKK took up arms in 1984, beginning a string of bloody attacks on Turkish soil that sparked a conflict that cost more than 40,000 lives.

But more than four decades on, the PKK in May announced its dissolution, saying it would pursue a democratic struggle to defend the rights of the Kurdish minority in line with a historic call by Ocalan.

- 'Power of politics' -

Throughout the morning, scores of cars could be seen pulling up to Casene cave, a symbolic location that once housed a Kurdish printing press, Firat news agency said.

Representatives of top officials in Iraqi Kurdistan were at the ceremony alongside Turkish intelligence officials, DEM lawmakers and journalists.

Earlier this week Ocalan said the disarmament process would be "implemented swiftly".

In recent months, the PKK has taken several historic steps, starting with a ceasefire and culminating in its formal dissolution announced on May 12.

The shift followed a historic appeal at the end of February by Ocalan, 76, who has spent the past 26 years behind bars.

T.Suter--VB