On Tuesday, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced the abolishment of controversial national security courses given at schools, which have long been criticized for breeding an ideology of militarism in the public by indoctrinating them with the belief that there is a constant threat against the country.
Peter Stano, spokesperson for EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Füle, told Today's Zaman on Wednesday that the government's move is a further positive step towards civilian oversight of the security forces, recalling that the issue was highlighted in the European Commission's 2011 Progress Report on Turkey.
“It is also an important step towards modernizing the education system. We recall in this context that further reforms with regard to civilian oversight of the security forces, most notably on the composition of the Supreme Military Council [YAŞ], the military justice system and the Personnel Law of the Turkish Armed Forces [TSK], are needed,” said Stano.
While citing the reasons for the abolishment of the courses, which are taught by military officers, Erdoğan, among other things, talked about the constant EU criticism on the issue in his speech on Tuesday. He also said the abolishment of these courses was proposed at conventions on national education and that the courses were considered inappropriate because military officers taught them.
