On the eve of 2012 (28 December), in a television interview upon a question of whether the government had a project to solve the issue, Erdoğan stated that the government was in negotiations with jailed rebel leader Öcalan [REF].
The government announced its long-awaited list of "wise men" on April 4, the members of a seven-region commission tasked with explaining the ongoing settlement process with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) to the public and promoting the negotiations.