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Bilgin says PM not totally wrong in polemic with columnists
“All Turkish prime ministers have complained about newspapers, their owners and columnists. Such complaints are not new to Turkey. What is new is the prime minister’s ‘openness.’ He openly puts forward his complaints. His metaphor of newspaper owners and columnists may be harsh, but he is not very wrong, indeed. Unfortunately, he is right to liken newspaper owners to ‘shop owners’ and columnists to ‘sales clerks’,” Bilgin told Neşe Düzel of the Taraf daily on Monday.
Erdoğan frequently complains about the way some columnists write about his Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and accuses them of provoking tension.
According to Bilgin, the media was stronger than the government during the Feb. 28, 1997 post-modern coup process. He maintained that the media was so powerful that it even enabled the establishment of a government. He said press organs had their own candidates that they supported for prime minister, as Hürriyet supported Mesut Yılmaz and Sabah supported Tansu Çiller.
Then-Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan resigned after giving his approval to the National Security Council’s (MGK) Feb. 28 decisions, handing over the Prime Ministry to Çiller. He presented the signatures of 270 deputies who stated that they would vote for the suggested Cabinet to President Suleyman Demirel, who was expected to ask Çiller to form the Cabinet; however, surprisingly, he asked Motherland Party (ANAP) leader Yılmaz to do so. The government formed by Yılmaz was unable to obtain a vote of confidence in Parliament. At this point, Demirel intervened in the process and asked his confidants in the True Path Party (DYP) to resign and join the Party for a Democratic Turkey (DTP), founded by Hüsamettin Cindoruk, thereby forming an alternative coalition government.
Bilgin also admitted his organization did not give “exemplary” support to democracy during the Feb. 28 period. In addition, he said the generals in Turkey tried to influence the media at the time.
“They did not openly say what they wanted, but they were quite clear about what they liked or did not like,” he said. “They were obsessed with reactionaryism and separatism.”
Bilgin, who was heading the Sabah group at the time and considered a leading figure in the Feb. 28 period, said that the Turkish generals were most angry at Sabah columnist Çetin Altan.
“They were clipping some of his columns and circulating them at the high levels of the commanderships,” Bilgin said.
He also talked about how the top generals began to organize briefings for the press and how they categorized the members of the media.
“Gen. Erol Özkasnak had a list in his hand titled ‘Dinç Bilgin press.’ The list classified writers according to their views,” he said.
Asked why he did not try to stop “decadence” in the media during the Feb. 28 process, which was supported by the Sabah group, Bilgin said “conformism” was sweeter.
“The media was stronger than ever at the time. The military was so powerful as well. But the government was weak. The media collaborated with the military and judiciary at the time. They had power which they should not have had against the government,” he added.
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