It seems that the problem is much bigger and much deeper, when for years it was thought of as a minor problem, relating to some marginal Islamist or Kurdish minority.
When one checks the names of the journalists -- from Cumhuriyet’s hard-line secularist Hikmet Çetinkaya to Milliyet’s liberal Hasan Cemal, all of whom are regarded as not trustworthy by the military -- it must be seen as a wake-up call for everybody. I hope that this time at last, the Turkish media will become aware of the ill-fated nature of that subjective procedure.
Indeed, as journalists working for Zaman daily, we have become used to living with this illogical and discriminatory application of accreditation by the Office of the Chief of General Staff since 1997, when Turkey witnessed it’s “post-modern coup.” Reporters, columnists and editors from such non-accredited media as Zaman, Yeni Şafak, Vakit, Kanal 7, Samanyolu TV, etc., were not permitted to follow any news related to Turkish military activities. It’s not possible for a non-accredited journalist to enter into any military institution to follow any event. It’s not even possible to visit any military museum as a journalist.
However, since I was based in Istanbul and was not responsible for following news and developments related to the military, I did not have much chance personally to feel the bitter taste of accreditation. My first personal experience took place not in Turkey but in Afghanistan. We -- 12 journalists, each of us from a European country -- had been invited by the US State Department to cover what they have been trying to do in this war-torn country. I was the only journalist from Turkey.
The whole program was exciting. We had a chance to speak with Afghans. We had an opportunity to talk to American civilian and military officials. We interviewed President Hamid Karzai. We visited Afghan and US military bases. We were even hosted at Bagram Air Base. We visited International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) headquarters. Since there was a lack of secure places in Kabul, US officials arranged us bedrooms in a residence, newly constructed within the garden of the Turkish Embassy. As expected, I had the chance to chat with our diplomats there.
Until that point, I had had no problem. One part of the program had been designed to give an opportunity for each journalist to meet with the commander of the forces from his own country. All of our countries were represented within ISAF, so our guides briefed us about the meetings, telling us that they had received appointments from the national commanders for each of us.
It was a surprise for me because I thought would be received by a Turkish commander, despite my being a journalist who was working for a non-accredited newspaper. I tried to think optimistically, assuming that since this was an international organization, the commander would not see any reason to create a problem. Reality struck when we arrived at the ISAF barracks. My friends were told where they would meet their respective national commanders. After everyone left, I was expecting to be told the same but it was not the case. Instead I would be told by one of our guides, an American soldier, that my appointment was cancelled. I got the point, but all the others were shocked. I asked the guide if he was sure that they had agreed to the appointment yesterday. There was no doubt about that. Then there were three possibilities for the change from positive to negative: The commander may have changed his mind. He might have received an order from his superiors in Ankara. Or he may have just learned that the Turkish journalist was from Zaman.
Can you imagine my situation among the other journalists and our hosts? How would I explain myself to others who barely knew about the unfortunate aspects of civilian-military relations in Turkey? Should I complain about our military’s rude behavior to foreigners in order to save my pride? Or should I lie by saying that this was just this commander’s personal impoliteness? As far as I remember, I tried to say what might rescue both Turkey’s image and my personality. But one of the guides whispered to me: “Is your newspaper critical of the government?” I kept quiet because I would need at least one hour to explain that we were indeed comfortable with the government. But though also part of the government, the military had a different understanding of society. And besides, there was a difference between the concept of state and government in Turkey.
I hope that today at last, the media will decide to speak out against all this nonsense.
