22 March 2010 / DERYA SAZAK MİLLİYET,
A “surprise” article was included in a constitutional reform package that the AK Party will send to political parties in Parliament concerning temporary Article 15 of the Constitution which stipulates that the leaders of the 1980 coup cannot be brought to justice for their actions.
If this article is removed, Turkey’s former President Kenan Evren, the leader of the 1980 military coup, will be called to account for the military coup. Even though many lawyers believe that coup plotters cannot be tried because of the statute of limitations, removing Article 15 from the Constitution is more important than alleged military plots called Kafes (Cage) and Balyoz (Sledgehammer) that have been on Turkey’s agenda. Accounting for Sept. 12, 1980 will be the driving force of the entire reform package. If the Constitution changes, demanding an accounting from the Sept. 12 perpetrators is a correct decision. Happy Nevruz to a flourishing democracy.
