Terror will persist until military tutelage ends

The platform's three-day meeting started on Friday at the Abant Palace Hotel in Abant, in northwest Turkey. Supported by the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV), a civic organization championing the principles of diversity, multiculturalism and dialogue, the meeting brought together scholars, writers, intellectuals and community leaders to discuss the subject of “Democracy and Tutelage.”

“Violence has increased. It is not possible to establish a healthy dialogue in such an atmosphere. A lack of dialogue helps the [military] tutelage maintain its grasp on the country. Violence paves the way to a stronger status quo. And the domination of violence in society clears the way for a stronger tutelage,” Professor Levent Köker, chairman of the board of directors of the Abant Platform, said during his opening speech.

According to Köker, Turkey can settle its problems through a stronger democracy, which will be available with a new and civilian constitution. “We want a democracy based on EU standards. Those who will achieve this are our politicians. The preliminary condition for a stronger democracy is a brand new constitution. Partial amendments will not suffice. Turkey needs a totally new constitution,” he said.

The current Constitution was drafted in 1980 under martial law after a coup d'état. Many circles in the country have long voiced a demand for a new civilian constitution because the existing one fails to respond to the needs of today's world.

The Abant Platform held a meeting on Friday in Abant, part of a three-day program, to discuss the subject of "Democracy and Tutelage" in Turkey. The participants included scholars, writers, intellectuals and community leaders.

“The tutelage is a remnant of the single-party period. But it became institutionalized with the 1980 Constitution,” Köker said, adding that the Turkish society is decisive on getting rid of the existing system of tutelage.

“A homogenous society to which the tutelage system was introduced no longer exists. Income levels have increased. We need a stronger political and social fight to get rid of the tutelage,” he said.

Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin also delivered a speech at the platform in which he drew a clear link between government efforts for a stronger democracy and an escalation in acts of terror. “Whenever we attempt to strengthen democracy and voice our wish for more freedom and rights, acts of terror increase. But those behind violent acts and attacks should know very well that they will not achieve their treacherous objective. They will drown in their own darkness. The government will never step back from its fight for a stronger democracy, unity and fraternity,” he said.

Terror has been the primary issue of debate in Turkey for the past couple of weeks. Terrorist attacks that primarily targeted military bases left dozens of security personnel dead and even more wounded. Terror attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) usually take on momentum in the spring and summer months as warmer weather brings increased infiltration of PKK terrorists from the mountains of northern Iraq. Several thousand terrorists are based in the mountains across the border.

The minister also noted that the terror problem affects all residents of Turkey, not just the security forces or the government. “Terror is seen as a problem by all people living in this country. It is a national problem. Heavy responsibility falls on the shoulders of the ruling party, opposition parties, the media, civil society organizations and civilians to back the fight against terror and terrorist organizations,” he said.

Voices louder against OHAL

According to Ergin, the declaration of an Emergency Rule Region (OHAL) in Turkey's Southeast would serve the terrorist PKK's purposes.

The call for OHAL came from the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli earlier this week. Referring to an escalation in terrorist attacks, Bahçeli claimed that all circumstances were present for the implementation of OHAL in the Southeast and that OHAL is required in order to eliminate the threat of terrorism.

Felicity Party (SP) leader Numan Kurtulmuş, who also attended the Abant Platform summit, said the declaration of OHAL would not help eradicate terrorism in Turkey. On the contrary, it would urge the terrorist PKK to launch more violent attacks.

“Had OHAL been a solution to the terror problem, no single individual would have joined the PKK during the 26 years when OHAL reigned in the region. One of the reasons why the PKK became an institutionalized body and an international organization is the anti-democratic practices under OHAL rule. Therefore, no one should dream about the return of OHAL,” Kurtulmuş added.

‘Turkey far from full democracy’

An expert in constitutional, Professor Ergun Özbudun also addressed participants of the platform. He said Turkey can be called a “half-democratic country” due to its Constitution.

“I do not agree with the definition of Turkey being the sole democratic country in the Muslim world. To me, Turkey lags behind even Indonesia in terms of democracy,” he said.

Özbudun joined Professor Köker's call for a brand new constitution in order to end military tutelage. He also criticized the higher judiciary for its past and recent controversial decisions. “They were uneasy to see a man who was not their candidate appear as a nominee for president in 2007. They believed they should keep power in their hands. The Constitutional Court approved an extremely unfortunate decision,” he said.

In late April 2007, the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) nominated then-Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül, whose wife wears a headscarf, to be its presidential candidate. Shortly after that, a former prosecutor put forward an idea based on his interpretation of the Constitution, claiming that the parliamentary quorum for a presidential election was 367. The AK Party had 361 seats in Parliament, and Gül received 361 votes from his party's deputies in the first round of voting. The CHP appealed the decision at the Constitutional Court, which ruled that a presidential candidate needed the support of at least 367 deputies to get elected.