Coup plot investigation may reach Çiçek’s superiors

The General Staff acknowledged the existence of evidence pointing to the authenticity of the plot in question on Monday and announced that a new military investigation had been launched into the plot. The plot is titled the Action Plan to Fight Reactionaryism and bears the genuine signature of Dursun Çiçek, a naval colonel.

According to the document, the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) made systematic preparations to damage the image of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and the Gülen movement in the eyes of the public.

According to Mesut Kurşun, a retired military judge, the General Staff Military Prosecutor’s Office is set to examine whether Col. Çiçek prepared the alleged coup plot on his own or upon a directive by his superiors. The colonel was the head of the 3rd Information and Support Branch Directorate of the General Staff’s Mobilization Department. However, the directorate was abolished in October 2009.

The General Staff also announced that a military prosecutor recently demanded the arrest of Çiçek but that the General Staff Military Court on March 1 refused to arrest the colonel. Çiçek was arrested twice last year, first in July and then in November, for suspected links to a terrorist organization but was released after brief spells in jail. The colonel is believed to be key in the exposure of the pro-coup junta within the armed forces. The investigation is still under way at the Military Prosecutor’s Office, according to the General Staff.

The İstanbul Prosecutor’s Office is also conducting a separate investigation into the suspected plot.

Retired judge Faik Tarımcıoğlu stressed that the main investigation into the plot is the one at the İstanbul Prosecutor’s Office. “Such a document could not be prepared by a single person. It must be a team effort. It will be revealed that Çiçek is not the sole person responsible for the alleged plot. The investigation will reveal who is behind the plot. The civilian investigation is the main one. The Military Prosecutor’s Office is investigating whether Çiçek abused his power. I think Çiçek will be suspended soon,” he remarked.

An unidentified military officer who sent in the original copy of Çiçek’s action plan last year claimed that the colonel received the order to prepare the document from his superiors at the General Staff, namely Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Hasan Iğsız, Gen. Mehmet Eröz and Gen. Mustafa Bakırcı.

According to jurists, civilian prosecutors may indict the generals in the weeks ahead.

At a press conference at the General Staff on June 26, Chief of General Staff Gen. İlker Başbuğ termed the coup plan a “piece of paper” and claimed that the document was fabricated to damage and defame the TSK. He also vowed to take action against those responsible for the plot if new evidence emerged pointing to the authenticity of the document. Observers now expect the military chief to keep his promise.

Tarımcıoğlu stressed that civilian prosecutors may interrogate Gen. Iğsız if the claims put forward by the unnamed military officer are true. “If those claims are proven correct, then civilian prosecutors may indict Gen. Iğsız. The genuine signature [belonging to Çiçek] has no meaning on its own,” he noted.

Retired Lt. Col. Tevfik Diker maintained that the General Staff should suspend the general. “There are claims that Gen. Iğsız gave directives to Col. Dursun for the preparation of the document. The TSK is placed under suspicion by such allegations. In order to protect the armed forces from further damage, the general should be suspended. Or the military chief should ask Gen. Iğsız to resign,” Diker added.

According to Rüştü Atpulat, a retired military judge, the military prosecutor who demanded the arrest of Col. Çiçek should appeal the court’s decision against his demand at a superior court. “The prosecutor has the right to do so. He should use his right to appeal the decision this week,” he noted.