The list includes the Republican People’s Party (CHP), the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), the Democrat Party (DP), the Democratic Left Party (DSP), the Workers’ Party (İP), the Turkish Communist Party (TKP), the Haydar Baş-led Independent Turkey Party (BTP), Yurt Party (YP) leader Sadettin Tantan, the Confederation of Revolutionary Workers’ Unions (DİSK), the Support for Modern Life Association (ÇYDD), the Judges and Prosecutors Association (YARSAV), active participants of republican rallies, the Association of Republican Women, the Atatürkist Thought Association (ADD) and People’s Houses (Halkevleri) as well as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which urges people to say “no” in the referendum by threatening to kill them or to set their villages on fire. There is also the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP), which is pressing its voters to boycott the referendum because it cannot tell them to say “no.” More groups may be added to this list.
I did not draw this list up to say, “Look at who is siding with whom?” Saying “yes” or “no” is an equally democratic right. Both those saying “yes” and those saying “no” have their own justifications.
The common characteristic of this “no” picture is to bring the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government down. However, this is not an election but a referendum. There is an inconsistency, but what they are trying to do politically is obvious. They believe that if the referendum ends in a “no,” this will weaken the AK Party.
On the other hand, the “yes” camp is arguing that this is a political matter and that the package will weaken tutelage and strengthen democracy. I am in the pro-”yes” camp. I believe that given the current status of development and the society’s democratic consciousness, the status quo that has been in place for 80 years can no longer be maintained and that military tutelage must be terminated. This is the only way out for the state, the politics and the country.
But I also know that it will not be easy. No one should dream that the system -- which has been put in place and fortified by military coups, and finely woven thanks to the cosmic men and certain media organizations -- can be undone overnight. It will take at least five or six years for us to climb the slope of democracy. The referendum is the first trough after the slope. If it ends in a “yes,” it will boost enthusiasm, commitment and determination for democratization.
I would like to question the naysayers in connection with a number of points. I’d like to do this because there is something about which they all fall silent and which they refrain from inquiring further. The insistence of the military about meddling with democracy, as we saw in the April 27, 2007 memorandum, the Ergenekon trial process, the Sledgehammer (Balyoz) trial, the presence of networks of prostitution established to blackmail admirals within the Naval Forces, mysterious deaths of military officers who commit suicide, the Council of State attack, the failure to catch the people who killed Uğur Mumcu, Abdi İpekçi, Prosecutor Doğan Öz and Hrant Dink… Why are they so impervious and indifferent to these issues? Why don’t the naysayers talk about these issues loudly? And why don’t they seriously question them?
The recent failure to send assistance to soldiers despite the fact that Herons, unmanned aerial vehicles, showed them being attacked by terrorists; the presence of military officers who call PKK militants “our men”; the failure to prevent attacks on Dağlıca, Aktütün, Sarıyayla and other military outposts despite the fact that officials were warned beforehand; and the ongoing silence within the military’s command echelon in the face of these claims... Why don’t the naysayers care about them?
However, the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) are one of the most important institutions in the country. And they are facing very big trouble right now. How can this silence be explained? How long can this be maintained? If it does not become transparent and if it does not inform the general public, the TSK cannot prevent a loss of credit or solve the problem of trust. This is the greatest evil we can do to our military.
“Yes” or “no” is not a political choice. “No” means further increasing polarization and intensifying the row. It means playing into the hands of the junta. “No” is a reverse wind. It is the road that leads to a violent settlement of the Kurdish issue. “No” is an invitation to violence.
“Yes,” on the other hand, means lowering tension, soothing the row and reinforcing democratization. “Yes” is an invitation to peace, tranquility and reconciliation.
