During his return from Albania and Serbia, Erdogan was asked about his and his ally MHP leader Devlet Bahceli’s offers to reconcile with the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party.
In a surprising move on Oct. 1, Bahceli shook hands with DEM Party deputies at the opening session of the Parliament.
He later “invited” the DEM Party to “become a party of Turkey.” Previously, he called for the closure of the DEM Party on several occasions, accusing them of collaborating with the outlawed PKK.
On Oct. 12, Erdogan said, “We find Mr. Bahçeli's attitude positive and meaningful for our country's struggle for democracy. We hope that the number of those who take these steps will increase in the future. As the number of those who take these steps increases, we hope that we can expand the base of social consensus on the new constitution.”
“In a geography surrounded by terrorist organizations, in a period of tensions in Iraq, civil war in Syria and Israel's brutalization, it is important to establish peace at home,” Erdogan said.
“We are always ready to resolve issues through non-terrorist methods. Because we do politics to strengthen the peace and unity of our country and to provide our nation with the quality services it deserves. This is also why we call for a new constitution. (We need) to make an inclusive, fair, civilian, and libertarian constitution,” he added.
Some critics said that Erdogan might want to reconcile with the DEM Party for the preparation of a new constitution, so that he can run for the presidency once again as the constitution limits the presidency to two terms of five years.
Erdogan’s candidacy for the 2023 presidential election was also controversial, as he had completed two terms since becoming president in 2014. The AKP held that elections before the 2017 constitutional reform should not be taken into account as the presidency assumed a different role after the parliamentary system was abolished.
The outlawed PKK launched its first attack in 1984 and the 1990s saw intense conflict between the PKK and Turkish Military especially in the country's southeastern region. Erdogan's government started to take steps regarding the Kurdish question in 2009 and initiated a "peace process" between 2013–2015 with the armed organization.
Nonetheless, the peace process failed in 2015 and an intense armed conflict erupted in southeastern Turkey until 2016. Dozens of civilians died and many cities were demolished during the period.