The conference Shaping Life Together: The Resolution Process in Turkey and Prospects for the Future,” organized by the Association for Peace Research (QAD), continues in Bonn with intensive discussions. The focus is on strategies for strengthening the peace process through civil society and the question of how democratic coexistence in Turkey can be shaped in the future.
In her opening speech, Dr. Dilek Kurban spoke on behalf of the association’s board about the aim and motivation behind the event. “Our gathering here is based on the belief and the will to resolve the Kurdish question in Turkey in a democratic, peaceful, and just manner,” said Kurban. She emphasized that peace requires broad social support and that the QAD association was founded to strengthen precisely this support.
Kurban expressly praised the imprisoned politician Selahattin Demirtaş, who, according to her statement, had contributed significantly to the founding of the association “with courage and foresight.” She said Demirtaş’s continued imprisonment was an expression of profound injustice.
Messages from prison: Hope despite repression
Later in the conference, messages from Selahattin Demirtaş and Selçuk Mızraklı, both of whom are imprisoned in Edirne high-security prison, were read out. In their joint letter, they expressed hope and determination: “We support the efforts for peace with all our strength – despite our unlawful imprisonment.”
Demirtaş and Mızraklı reiterated that Abdullah Öcalan was “clearly and resolutely committed to ending the armed struggle and institutionalizing democratic politics.” A sustainable solution, they said, was only possible through the rule of law and social participation. At the same time, they warned: “The real challenge begins with building peace in the heart of society. This requires broad social participation—from academics to environmental activists, from trade unions to women’s organizations.”
Peace is more than the silence of weapons
In the conference’s first panel discussion, entitled “Internal and external factors in building a democratic life,” Prof. Dr. Hamit Bozarslan, Ayşegül Doğan of the DEM Party, and Prof. Dr. Naif Bezwan discussed the conditions and concepts of sustainable peace.
Bezwan, a member of the QAD Association Council and senior scientist and project manager at the Institute for Constitutional and Administrative Law at the University of Vienna, questioned the common concepts of peace. Peace, he said, is not a static state, but a dynamic process in which power relations, political interests, and social forces are constantly renegotiated. He warned against accepting an “oligarchic peace,” as currently prevails globally.
DEM Party: For a democratic, just peace order
Ayşegül Doğan, spokesperson for the DEM Party, called for a strategic reorientation of peace policy in Turkey. “We are not talking about just any kind of peace. We mean an honest, equal, and lasting peace. Separating peace and democracy leads to a dead end. That is why terms such as “democratic negotiation” and “democratic republic” are not empty phrases, but political necessities,” said Doğan.
Bozarslan: The Kurdish question is a historical issue
According to political scientist Hamit Bozarslan, the core of the conflict lies beyond security policy narratives. “The Kurdish issue is not a question of terrorism, but a historical issue that dates back to the 19th century,” he emphasized. Anyone who sees the problem solely as a threat or security risk is missing the point, said Bozarslan and warned: “When trust in time, space, and language is lost, a society loses its ability to think. This is precisely what can be observed in Turkey—and a serious examination of the Kurdish question could help to restore these social foundations.”
High-profile conference
The QAD conference is also attended by DEM MP Mithat Sancar, who is also a member of the Imrali delegation, HDP Honorary Chairman Ertuğrul Kürkçü, researcher and activist Dr. Özgür Sevgi Göral, economist Dr. Yahya Madra, political scientist Şehbal Şenyurt Arınlı, historian Prof. Dr. Hans-Lukas Kieser, journalist and politician Selahattin Soro, and other renowned personalities. The conference aims to formulate concrete ideas for political and civil society steps on the path to a just peace. A central concern is not only to negotiate peace processes at the political level, but also to anchor them in people’s everyday lives.