Parliament’s anti-terror panel meets to set work schedule

ANKARA

A parliamentary commission tasked to tackle the legal and political aspects of the ongoing "terror-free Türkiye" bid convened for the third time on Aug. 12 to set the work schedule.

Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş made the opening statement of the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission's third meeting with the participation of 51 members from the political parties represented at the parliament.

As the İYİ (Good) Party declined to join the panel, its three seats were distributed to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party). Currently, the AKP has 22, CHP 11 and DEM Party five members at the commission.

“Our commission is conducting its works in a sincere manner. Its works are advancing in line with its own agenda. Our biggest wish is to take all these steps jointly and in unanimity,” Kurtulmuş said.

He also recalled that the main objective of the commission is to set a clear way for ridding Türkiye of the terror problem through consensus and joint steps.

The commission members will discuss the work schedule of the commission and which civil society organizations and public figures to invite to the commission.

It is expected to work until October and submit a report to the general assembly over the proposals of legal amendments regarding the "terror-free Türkiye" initiative.

As part of the bid, PKK announced that it decided to dissolve and disarm after a 40-year-long armed conflict against Türkiye. Its first group of members dropped and burned their weapons during a symbolic ceremony last month in northern Iraq.