Given the weight of the army in Turkish politics since the founding of the republic in 1923, a major reshuffling is needed to protect Turkish democracy in the 21st century. Some critics present this as vengeance by the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government against the military. But they are wrong. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is simply following the popular mandate to uphold the rule of law and protect Turkish democracy. And this is a much-needed move to normalize Turkish politics.Abolishing EMASYA is an important step to normalize the role of the army in Turkey. The protocol was signed during the Feb. 28, 1997 process and gives extraordinary powers to the military. A national army has the mandate to protect the country against foreign enemies and external threats, not against its own people. What is identified as “internal threat” has given the armed forces the pretext to meddle in politics and carry out three major military coups since 1960. Prime Minister Erdoğan referred to a major revision of Turkey’s national security concept which we hope will correct this threat perception. This is not to deny the fact that the TSK is an integral part of the Turkish state. But it is an institution just like any other and has to abide by the Constitution and the laws of the country.
EMASYA enables the army to act like a police force in towns and cities. Needless to say, this gives extraordinary powers to the military. As a report by The Washington Post (“Turkish military no longer calls shots,” Feb. 2, 2010) notes, such powers are incompatible with the European Union acquis. A democratic and transparent regime of civilian-military relations has been clearly established under EU principles. Turkey’s EU process calls for a cultural and institutional reform of the way civilian-military relations are conducted in Turkey.
But equally important is the popular demand to see the army in its barracks. Two major studies recently showed that the more the TSK meddles in politics, the less credible it becomes. As a result, those who see the Turkish army as the “most reliable institution” in Turkey have dropped from 90-plus percent to some 80 percent for the first time. This is still a very high level of confidence in the army, but the generals, including Chief of General Staff Gen. İlker Başbuğ, know that they do not have unlimited credit with the people. That’s why Başbuğ is trying hard to keep the army out of politics.
The problem is that there are more militarist actors in Turkey than inside the armed forces. The three military coups of 1960, 1971 and 1980 were all carried out with encouragement from and cooperation with pro-military civilians, including businessmen, journalists, bureaucrats, academics and retired generals. These so-called “civilian” actors see the army as vital for the protection of the Turkish state. But what kind of a state? Is it really a state of democracy and the rule of law? Or is it simply their narrow version of an ethno-secularist, elitist state?
This is now rapidly changing. The Turkish public no longer tolerates extraordinary measures in politics. This holds true for soldiers as well as politicians. When Erdoğan said last Sunday that EMASYA would be terminated and a new national security concept paper would be written, he was also referring to the popular demand to clearly define the role of the army and liberate Turkish politics from military tutelage. This is not a war against the TSK but a much needed step for the normalization of Turkish politics.
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