TSK drew up another plan after AK Party victory in 2007 polls

The AK Party won an overwhelming victory in the elections, garnering almost 47 percent of the national vote. The document, which was published in a number of Turkish dailies on Tuesday, showed that the action plan was prepared at the order of then-Chief of General Staff Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt.

The new plan has sent shockwaves across the country at a time when the authenticity of a military plot aimed at undermining the power of the AK Party and the faith-based Gülen movement was certified with a forensic report.

An unnamed military officer mailed a letter to the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor Aykut Cengiz Engin last week, which showed that the plot, called the Action Plan to Fight Reactionaryism, was produced by a group of army members aiming to destroy the governing party and the Gülen movement.

The officer also attached another action plan to his document, which was prepared by Lt. Gen. Nusret Taşdeler after the July 22, 2007 elections. The five-page plan argued that the July 22 polls stood as a milestone in the transformation of the Turkish Republic into a moderate Islamic country.

“It is a necessity to acknowledge that nationalist discourse and policies received a blow after the elections. The election results are seen as a victory of moderate Islam. It is noteworthy that the West continues to strongly back a government it terms as ‘Islamist’ and ‘pro-Islam’ at a time when anti-Islam movements are so widespread in the West,” read the plan.

According to the plan, circles that sought to bring moderate Islam to Turkey had achieved their objective: “Turkey has started to be seen as a model by Muslim countries. It is clear that it will be difficult to facilitate a retreat from this tendency.” The plan displayed the TSK’s concern that the AK Party and its supporters could initiate a process to undermine the fundamental values of the republic and the nation in the wake of the July 22 polls.

“Discussions on a civilian Constitution and whether Atatürkism should have a place in the Constitution, which began immediately after the elections; the main focus of the new Constitution being on the headscarf; and the debates over the opening of the Supreme Military Council [YAŞ] decisions to a judicial supervision stand as the first signs of a troublesome period,” noted the plan.

The action plan also argued that the July 22 polls brought with it a revival in the Greater Middle East Project (BOP), saying: “The modernization, enlightenment and cultural transformation process that started with the planned and conscious efforts of revered leader [Mustafa Kemal] Atatürk have been stopped and rendered ineffective with a movement called ‘moderate Islam, new Ottomanism or counter-revolution’ and the values and gains of the republic have been targeted.”

Disturbed by Gül’s election as president

The election of Abdullah Gül as the new president was also evaluated in the action plan. Gül was elected the 11th president of the Turkish Republic in late August 2007, despite strong resistance by the opposition parties and the armed forces. The main reason behind this resistance was the fact that Gül was a member of the AK Party, and his wife wore the Islamic headscarf.

“Abdullah Gül has been elected the new president despite all warnings to the prime minister [Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.] Although his election could be seen as a move to protect the balance within the AK Party, it can also be understood that they are ready to face all troubles Gül’s election may bring with it,” the plan continued.

The plan also expressed dissatisfaction in the armed forces over widespread acceptance of the Islamic headscarf by the public. “It seems that the public has accepted the headscarf. It is seen that the headscarf has started to enter invitations, hail and farewell ceremonies and daily life. Headscarved and even chador-clad women have started to be seen in the Turkish Parliament, one of the most prominent public spheres,” the document noted.

‘Entry of DTP into Parliament is misfortune’

One of the headlines of the action plan was devoted to the entry of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) into Parliament. In the July 22 polls, the party sent 20 deputies to Parliament and formed a parliamentary group.

“The entry of the DTP into Parliament is misfortune in the name of Turkish democracy. It has been understood from the very first day that the objective of those people, who call the members of the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party [PKK] their brothers, is not to declare their ideas on a democratic platform but to quarrel with the state. … There is an increase in the views that the entry of the DTP in Parliament will bear an important opportunity for the solution of the Kurdish question. Reactions that came from the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities upon the removal of the mayor of Sur in Diyarbakır show that the European Union will continue to protect Kurds. It is also estimated that the DTP will increase their demands prior to the release of the union’s progress report on Turkey in a way to create crisis in the country, which is aimed at boosting the EU pressure on Turkey,” it was remarked in the plan.

According to the action plan, there has been a considerable decrease in the support for the TSK after the July 22 elections.

“A certain percentage of the media, business world, workers’ unions, universities and nongovernmental organizations are no more at the side of the armed forces. … Some religion-based TV stations air programs on soldiers, martyrs and war veterans; invite their families for fast-breaking dinners during Ramadan; and send aid packages to their homes. The message that they wish to disseminate with such actions is that the military belongs to the nation. … In the new period, the TSK should produce new policies. First of all, we should acknowledge that we are in a time that necessitates new measures and applications. It is seen that the AK Party does not pay heed to TSK warnings on fundamental issues and continues to proceed on its own road,” stressed the plan.