Military on air: Gen. Başbuğ returns to newspaper headlines

    The military chief had pledged to refrain from making statements to members of the press when he was appointed to his position in 2008. However, this has proven to be an empty promise. The general rarely misses the chance to voice the military's position on developments in the country. He used to do so through regular press conferences until a few months ago, when he changed his tactics and these conferences were cancelled. He currently speaks to journalists -- only to those who have military accreditation -- at the General Staff to notify them of the point of view of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) on a number of issues. The frequent meetings between Gen. Başbuğ and newspapers are, however, not welcomed by most observers.

    According to Professor Mehmet Altan, a Star daily columnist, Turkey has the most “talkative” chief of general staff. “Exactly one week ago, Gen. Başbuğ complained to journalists he hosted that the armed forces was disturbed by constantly being at the top of Turkey's agenda. Only one week after that statement, he invited another media group [to his headquarters]. If he is disturbed, why does he keep talking? It is really hard to understand,” he noted.

    The armed forces have been the focus of debates in Turkey for the past few weeks, after the exposure of an alleged military plot to overthrow the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government through subversive plans. Titled the Balyoz (Sledgehammer) Security Operation Plan, the document is not the first of its kind. It is preceded by many others, all of which outline different methods of getting rid of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's party and government. Last week, Gen. Başbuğ spoke to the Hürriyet daily to clarify the TSK's position on the Gülhane Military Academy of Medicine's (GATA) refusal to allow the prime minister's wife, Emine Erdoğan, to enter its facilities because she wears a headscarf. He said the refusal was “indefensible.” “I wish such an incident had never occurred. It is impossible to defend,” he noted.

    Erdoğan was hoping to pay a bedside visit to an actor at the hospital in 2007. She was told, however, that she would not be allowed to enter the facility wearing her headscarf.

A controversial headscarf ban is in place in Turkey’s public sphere and applies to university students as well as those working in the public sector. Women wearing headscarves are not allowed to enter military facilities, including hospitals and recreation areas belonging to the armed forces.

The military chief made his way onto the first page of the Habertürk daily this week with a five-hour interview. The interview was published by the daily in two parts on Thursday and Friday.

On Thursday, he expressed strong disbelief over an alleged plot to assassinate two admirals at the Naval Forces Command, calling news reports on the plot a “smear campaign” against the armed forces. He also said such reports were pushing the limits of the TSK’s patience.

Ten naval officers have been arrested so far as part of the suspected plot against admirals Metin Ataç and Eşref Uğur Yiğit.

Adem Yavuz Arslan, the Ankara representative of the Bugün daily, said Gen. Başbuğ’s remarks have come as open interference in the judicial process as the plot is currently under investigation.

“He said indictments do not mention the assassination plot. He probably did not read them carefully. … But we need to wait for the conclusion of the judicial process patiently. If parties continue to make statements that stand by suspects, a court ruling at the end of their trial will not satisfy anyone. An image of interference [in the judiciary] will damage the armed forces most,” Arslan underlined.

The military chief told the Habertürk daily that none of the five indictments prepared thus far as part of the Ergenekon case mention the assassination plot. An indictment accepted by the İstanbul 12th High Criminal Court last week has, however, proven the military chief wrong in his assertions. According to the indictment, the weapons discovered during police excavations in Poyrazköy in April would be used by a junta nested within the Naval Forces Command.

On Friday, however, Gen. Başbuğ adopted “threatening” language when talking with Habertürk and warned unspecified “parties” not to try the military’s patience.

“If we run out of patience, we will start sharing with the public all we know. We have lots of information. We will have to share it with the public. We will seek legal redress and seek our rights,” he said. He also complained that information was leaked from the armed forces.

Unidentified individuals have lately been sending the liberal Taraf daily military documents that include plans to overthrow the AK Party government and undermine religious communities. The daily has published many of those documents, which have created a huge fuss in the country. Forensic examinations proved many of them to be authentic, which has raised suspicions over an armed forces plan to stage a coup d’état.

Taraf and the TSK have been at odds for a long time. The armed forces accuse the daily of working to undermine its image while the daily argues that the military is engaged in coup plans. Several Taraf reporters and writers have faced judicial cases thus far.

İhsan Dağı, a professor at the Middle East Technical University’s (ODTÜ) international relations department, was asked whether it could be perceived as “ordinary” for a chief of general staff to give long interviews to two newspapers over the course of a few days.

“To me, it is not ordinary. If so, why does he do so?” he asked, and argued that the interview with Habertürk may have come after “covert reactions” to his interview with Hürriyet. “He told Hürriyet that he wished the GATA incident had not happened. Could his harsh remarks to Habertürk have come because of his ‘wish’? He may have delivered those harsh remarks to calm ‘covert groups’ within the military and avoid their criticism,” Dağı remarked.

The professor also said if he is correct, the military chief is under heavy pressure. “To me, Gen. Başbuğ can’t wait for August to remove the ‘ordeal’ of his uniform. Just like [former chiefs of general staff] generals Hilmi Özkök and Yaşar Büyükanıt did.” Gen. Başbuğ will retire in August.

In the meantime, the chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Deniz Baykal, called on everyone to listen to the statements of the military chief, saying that recent events have urged him to adopt a new position against developments.