Last week the Supreme Court of Appeals overturned the acquittals of Professor İbrahim Kabaoğlu and Professor Baskın Oran on charges relating to a report on minorities. This report, prepared by a human rights advisory body affiliated with the Prime Ministry, threatens the indivisibility of the state with its suggestion of broadening the definition of ''minority,'' the Supreme Court of Appeals stated in its ruling.
Again last week, a song sung by Turkish singer İsmail Türüt, coupled with a video, was uploaded to YouTube. The song and the video scenes hailed the murder suspects of Hrant Dink, the Turkish-Armenian journalist killed in İstanbul in January of this year.
Sabah daily portrayed the Türüt event and the Supreme Court of Appeals decision in a striking way on its front page under the headline, "This is the clear and present danger." The article noted, "While Baskın Oran's report is seen as a clear and present danger, the video and song that praise political murders are openly aired." (Sabah, Sept. 16, 2007)
Finally acting on media reports, İstanbul's Chief Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation yesterday into singer Türüt and the lyricist of the song praising Dink's murder suspects.
In the midst of government efforts to introduce a new constitution to replace the 1982 document dictated by the military, these events once again remind us how crucial it is to change the mindset of those who are provoking or staying indifferent to unlawful acts. We should establish a mechanism that has been forcing those to act in line with the supremacy of the rule of law instead of paving the way for legalizing unlawful acts.
The primary emphasis should be given to education, through which every Turk should be taught what human rights means and what the grave consequences of their violation will mean for the country's prosperity.
Another striking event took place recently when retired noncommissioned officers took the military to the European Court of Human Rights. The Turkish Retired Noncommissioned Officers Association (TEMAD) finally decided to go to the European court when it lost its 40-year-long legal battle in Turkey over its search to participate in the running or the Turkish Armed Forces Assistance Center (OYAK) and fully benefit from its funds. (Umur Talu, Sabah, Sept. 17, 2007)
OYAK is a military-controlled fundraising board turned big business.
Noncommissioned officers members comprise almost 70 percent of the strength of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and the basic funds of OYAK come from compulsory contributions from TSK members. But TEMAD has failed in its long fight to fully benefit from the funds created from the salaries of its members and to participate in the management of OYAK. (Umur Talu, Sabah, Sept. 17, 2007)
TEMAD has decided to continue its struggle in Strasbourg.
Dengir Mir Mehmet Fırat, deputy chairman of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), said over the weekend that a draft constitution has now emerged that reflects the will of the political authority.
"The new constitution will be individual-centered, supportive of freedoms, while deepening democracy, institutionalizing the legal state concept with a civilian nature."
Fırat's description of the new constitution sounds good, but another AK Party deputy, Hüsrev Kutlu, said during a weekend meeting in Ankara that he did not believe a "very civilian and very democratic" constitution would emerge." (ANKA news agency, Sept. 16, 2007)
"Because," Kutlu said, "those involved in the constitution drafting board will have the concern of 'What will the military think?' while debating each article of the document. Thus I am concerned that we will not have the constitution that we have been longing for. The biggest problem in Turkey is who will protect us (the Turks) from those protectors," he said, in a reference to military trusteeship; the Turkish military sees itself as the guarantor of the secular republic.
Indeed, most of the debate over the new constitution has centered on issues that could have touched upon the military's strong role in Turkey's political life. Though there are some changes being made in the constitution that might lessen the military's intervention in the political life, as Kutlu mentioned, courageous steps to end military trusteeship may take time.
There are some other shortcomings that should be corrected in the draft constitution, such as gender rights, which currently portray women as a group that needs to be protected rather than seeing women as individuals deserving of equal rights with men.
The recent events, coupled with introducing a civilian constitution to the country, highlight the vital nature of the changes that need to be made in our own minds regarding respect for the rule of law.
