There is strong resistance to change not only in the HSYK, but also in the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), the Foreign Ministry and the media. Foreign Ministry bureaucrats sent a statement defending the murder of Hrant Dink to the European Court of Human Rights despite the government’s stance. What had President Abdullah Gül said? He said, “Unfortunately we lost a citizen because we did not take sufficient measures.” There are people who are resisting even within the government. The General Staff has not made an announcement on the Heron scandal regarding the raid on the Hantepe military outpost for 20 days. Even in countries that are ruled by coups there would not be this kind of silence. The only person who has said anything about the incident is National Defense Minister Vecdi Gönül. And he denies the incident. A minister who has been pushed into lying is still serving in the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government. But President Gül had said then that nothing would remain concealed and that all allegations would be examined. He underlined that those who do wrong need to be dismissed.
It is crystal clear how institutions, newspapers and television channels that have become the pillars of the tutelage regime inhibit democratization. But time is running out. On the morning of Sept. 13, Turkey will wake up excited, enthusiastic and determined to pursue democracy. As the referendum approaches, the “no” front that is trying to turn the issue into a matter of challenging the AK Party is losing its credibility and ability to persuade.
We do not want to live in a dark country any longer.
What kind of a country is this that on May 29, 1977 a police officer opened fire on former Prime Minister Bülent Ecevit at the İzmir Çiğli Airport? Authorities determined that there were only three guns in Turkey of the type used in the assassination attempt and these belonged to the special forces command. The incident was subsequently covered up.
What kind of a country is this that someone wants to kill Ecevit while he is the prime minister? There is still the question of whether Grand Unity Party (BBP) Leader Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu, who died in a helicopter crash, was the victim of an accident or an assassination.
What kind of a country is this that Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Özkök has to bring lunch from home out of fear of being poisoned? There is still a gray cloud over the death of gendarmerie general commander Gen. Eşref Bitlis. The killings of Brig Gen. Bahtiyar Aydın and Colonel Rıdvan Özden are still among unsolved murder cases.
What kind of a country is this that the death of the late President Turgut Özal is still a mystery? His wife, Semra Özal, has said that she has insisted on having an autopsy done, but to no avail. His son, Ahmet Özal, has said: “So many strange events have happened that you can’t help but be suspicious. We were told that blood samples were taken. When we put some pieces together and became suspicious we asked for these blood samples. At first they said, ‘OK, we will give them to you tomorrow.” We called again the next day. They said to us, ‘Sorry, someone spilled them by accident.’”
What kind of a country is that the residents of Dersim were bombed on the grounds that they had “rebelled” from May 4, 1937 until the fall of 1938 by an aircraft fleet in which Sabiha Gökçen participated as a pilot and 40,000 innocent people were massacred? Gökçen was given a medal for firing the most rockets at the closest range to the ground.
I have no tolerance for my country remaining in darkness. My country needs to find the light. Politics, the AK Party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) do not concern me. I say enough. I want to live in a country where thousands of unsolved murders do not happen, where everyone is accountable, where there is the rule of law, and where freedom and rights have reached universal standards. Everyone needs to determine their stance. If we don’t chose a side now, then when?
That is why, from the bottom of my heart, I make a call for hope and confidently say “yes.”
