For survival, people need laws and the solutions they can bring about for problems. This framework given to us by law is complemented by a concrete or living being that represents real life and our feelings.
This framework, and the living being inside it, should guide us. In chaotic or murky times, this compass should show us what is right or justifiable. We should be able to present this framework along with the figure inside it as a model for those who seek correct criteria both for the past and the future.
The model I will propose is the Hanefi Avcı model. Those who want to understand what happened in the last quarter century in Turkey can regard the place where Hanefi Avcı stands as the legitimate fixed point of the compass and assess events from this point.
The students at the Police Academy or the War Academy, who will wield weapons for the security of this country, should study the personality and life of Hanefi Avcı for the “hero” model they seek. A Kurdish citizen who wants to have an honorable and secure life in this country should see the Republic of Turkey as Hanefi Avcı would see it. Those who are considering committing a crime should wake up from nightmares involving Hanefi Avcı.
Before the parliamentary elections of July 22, Abdülhamit Bilici and I were touring around in Thrace to learn about voters' tendencies. We stopped by an association. During our conservation with them, they did not talk about their problems, or about politics in general. They talked exclusively about the Edirne police chief and what he had done as if he was a mythological hero. We learned that he managed to secure a decrease in crime rates. We then visited Hanefi Avcı, but we found an ordinary man like any of us, not a mythological hero.
The statement of Hanefi Avcı, when he testified last month as a witness for a trial going on in Diyarbakır, should be regarded as the fixed compass. Having served as the intelligence department head in Diyarbakır for eight years, from 1984 to 1992, Hanefi Avcı is uncovering not only a handful of incidents or inexplicable murders, but the entire shadowy era. He repeated the statements he gave to the parliamentary commission set up to investigate the Susurluk scandal. He explained who gave the instructions to kill and who implemented those instructions and, most importantly, he talks about JİTEM, whose existence is officially denied. He says that with the establishment of JİTEM, the number of murders and bombings in the Southeast increased, and alleges that the commanders knew about the activities of JİTEM.
The name of Hanefi Avcı first came to public attention with the Susurluk commission. Then, he attended “32. Gün,” a TV program, and disclosed offenses committed and a web of crime. Upon instruction from Gen. Çevik Bir, he was forced to retire and was imprisoned. The testimony he made last month was no different from what he had told the Susurluk commission.
What Hanefi Avcı did, by risking his person and his career, perfectly defines the model I refer to. What we see is an officer of the law with a merit that is rarely found in honest men: When his courage is coupled with a penchant for intelligence, Hanefi Avcı represents the model we seek for our future.
Seeing Hanefi Avcı, we can conclude that there are still people who are both honest and courageous. Compare those who are being tried in the Ergenekon case with Hanefi Avcı and his likes.
Which model will win? Which one does Turkey need?
