The Brussels Palace of Justice is the seat of the Court of Cassation. Photo: Courtesy/Wikipedia
BRUSSELS,— The Brussels Appeals Court ruled on Friday that the activities of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) are not terrorist, and rejected trying 36 Kurdish politicians.
The Belgian Court of Cassation has ruled that the activities of PKK which is leading an armed struggle against the Turkish state which denies the rights of the Kurds are non-terrorist, and rejected the trial of 36 Kurdish pro-PKK politicians; the KONGRA-GEL Co-chair Remzi Kartal, the member of Kurdistan Community Union’s Coordination Zibar Ayder.
The Belgian Chamber of Indictment, however, blocked prosecution against all those standing trial in the case, ruling that the conflict involving the PKK in Turkey is an “internal armed conflict” and, as such, the group cannot be considered a terrorist organization.
The court judged that the PKK, including their armed branch that is known as the People’s Defense Forces (HPG), is to be considered a non-state actor involved in an intensive non-international conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state.
Therefore, it ruled, the case is subject to international humanitarian law when involving acts taking place on Turkish soil.
“Insufficient objections were found to be able to conclude that the PKK/HPG was guilty of terrorist crimes outside of the aforementioned conflict area,” the ruling stated.
“Therefore, the PKK/HPG cannot be considered as a terrorist group, and the participation in the activities or having a leading position within this organization is not punishable under Belgian criminal law.”
As in 2016, the Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned the decision.
“It is possible to appeal against the decision in the Belgium Court of Appeals. Turkey will continue its legal fight determinedly,” ministry spokesperson Hami Aksoy said, in a statement.
In 2006, Belgium began investigations with 36 Kurdish politicians, including Remzi Kartal, Zibar Ayder and Adam Ozon. In 2016, the Belgian Chamber of Investigation announced that the PKK is not a terrorist party and it will not allow to open a case against it.
The PKK took up arms in 1984 against the Turkish state, which still denies the constitutional existence of Kurds, to push for greater autonomy in Turkish Kurdistan for the Kurdish minority who make up around 22.5 million of the country’s 79-million population. More than 40,000 Turkish soldiers and Kurdish rebels, have been killed in the conflict.
A large Kurdish community in Turkey and worldwide openly sympathise with PKK rebels and Abdullah Ocalan, who founded the PKK group in 1974 and currently serving a life sentence in Turkey, has a high symbolic value for most Kurds in Turkey and worldwide according to observers.
In 2017, Kurdish politician Zübeyir Aydar said: “It is important that the court ruling is in our favor, and this occurring in the capital of Europe has a different importance. During the previous hearing, it was discussed for the first time if this is a war or terror. The court ruled in our favour for the first time on November 3, describing the PKK as not a terrorist organisation but a party of the war. The Attorney’s Office filed an objection and we made our defence. Now, the superior court has rejected their appeal and made a just decision.”
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