Almost all the advice contained in the report echoed information heard earlier from those supporting further democratization in Turkey. Of course, the work done by the commission cannot be disparaged. After all, for Parliament, which is the greatest victim of the coups throughout the history of the Turkish Republic, to take this step in backing its own law is in fact a turning point worthy of note.
Also, let us not forget that there are those who remain in circles in Turkey who would prefer to see the coup supporters and junta members hidden, who want to dilute the issues, and who persist in creating purposeful confusion regarding these matters. In such a climate, the value of a parliamentary commission’s work, when it comes to raising public consciousness, is great. It is not sufficient, though. The most concrete step, which now needs to be taken, is the creation of a civil or democratic constitution. It is during the process of creating this constitution that it will become clear just who stands where, and who is sincere in their desire to see democracy triumph.
One of the suggestions in the report from the commission, that “a commission be formed which can enter the cosmic chamber,” should definitely be realized. The 150-year-old deep state is still standing, and still strong. In Italy, Felice Casson, the justice commissioner who led the fight against the Italian version of Ergenekon, called Gladio, was only able to take real strides once he entered the “cosmic chamber.” Zaman newspaper journalist Ali İhsan Aydın had two successful interviews with Casson -- now a senator -- in his office in Rome. The words spoken during these interviews by Casson should be read and re-read by everyone. Let me remind you of some of what he said:
“We found those responsible for the massacres. We got rid of the organization whose very presence was a danger to a democratic society. I do not think we were able to completely eliminate them, though. It is possible that they are functioning under a different structure now. Gladio is not the only illegal secret organization in Italy. There are parallel organizations, like the Rose of the Wind, the Avanguardia Nazionale and the P2 Masonic lodge, which are also still functioning. The Gladio structure is not one that administers these other groups from the top down. In fact, Gladio was just one of these organizations. As for the ‘tension strategy’ that is driven forward and implemented, it is something greater. Gladio is just a means to an end.
“The greatest difficulty we encountered during the investigation was actually accessing Gladio’s international connections. For a prosecutor, accessing these was very difficult. They had ties not only to the secret services of some NATO members, but also to those of other countries.
“While doing research in the archives of the Italian Military Intelligence and Security Service, I came across ties to Turkey. Turkey is a country with its own particular, more complicated problems. The political, economic, and cultural structure in Italy is simpler. Turkey is a border country. It is important both for Europe as well as the Middle East. This is not only true today, but in the past as well.”
Casson sees Turkey as having a very expansive horizon. When one looks at PKK terrorism, Syria, Iraq, Israel, US policies and all the developments in our region as a whole, it is quite clear that we are not just dealing with coups and junta members. No matter what happens in our region, it concerns Turkey on a first-degree level. At the same time, Turkey is the country in the region which some would like to see impeded.
The game is clear to us, though: polarizing Turkey through “tension-increasing strategy” and provocations. This is why our youth was pushed into such bloody clashes during coup periods, divided into rightist and leftist groups. The children of the people of the nation were shot and struck down during ideologically based confrontations. Assassinations aimed at triggering polarizations between secular and non-secular factions, Sunnis and Alevis, and Turks and Kurds. Unsolved murders and massacres, all planned with this aim. No one needs to provide any more grist for the mill among those who want to see Turkey polarized…
