Atrocities in Turkey worse than before, say victims of 1997 post-modern coup
Victims of Turkey’s ‘post-modern coup of 28 February 1997’ held a meeting recently to mark the 20th year in the aftermath of the brief military intervention – against the Islamic government of Welfare Party – of year 1997 and to compare the situation of those times with today’s state of affairs in Turkey.
The meeting was also attended by a number of parliamentarians and politicians, including HDP MP Hüda Kaya, AKP’s co-founder Fatma Bostan Ünsal, and CHP MP Mehmet Bekaroğlu.
A group of academics who have been either suspended or dismissed from post with the order of state of emergency decrees were also present at the meeting.
When comparing the times of the February 28 military intervention and the coup of 1980 with today’s Turkey under state of emergency law, prominent Islamic theologian and author İhsan Eliaçık said: “Today’s atrocities have exceeded those of the past.”
According to reports of Evrensel newspaper, participants of the organization signed a joint statement where the signatories pointed out that ‘democracy in Turkey has been heavily damaged and the institutions of independent judiciary and the media have been almost virtually eliminated’ with the recent process and state of emergency decrees passed in reaction to the failed coup attempt of July 15th, which is alleged to have been carried out by followers of Islamic cleric Fethullah Gülen, who has been living in the USA in exile.
In his speech, dismissed scholar Dr. Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu said: “We went through this process with February 28 intervention. We all experienced arrests and oppression all together. Especially the religious groups were the target in the atrocities then. February 28 was a blow on democracy. And, a religiou prime minister getting forced by the army to step down was not something this country was unfamiliar with... Today, we are experiencing another times of oppression. Media has been silenced virtually. Judiciary has been completely annihilated. Tens of thousands of people are dismissed. Hundreds of journalists, authors, and scholars are jailed...”
Also referring to the referendum process and the proposals of the ruling party to establish a presidential system in Turkey, Gergerlioğlu said a one-man system is tried to be enforced in Turkey.
Among the other speakers, prominent theologian Eliaçık said he was also tried in 30 different courts in connection to February 28 operations and added the following: “Then, I was jailed twice. And, twice, my house was raided in the middle of the night. The newspaper that I was writing for received fines of thousands of lira... We were labeled as terrorists... Today, I am again at courts... Recently, they have again begun filing cases on accusations ‘in connection to terror.’ We have been on the streets for 20 years and against the government. We have been victimized in both processes (February 28 and July 15 operations). But the recent process is worse than that of February 28. In the past, there were at least judges and prosecutors and they used to be at least legally trustworthy. Now, there are prosecutors who do now even know how to prepare an indictment... 40000 people have been jailed: that is something that did not happen in the past (February 28 post-modern coup). I was also jailed after September 12 (1980) coup in Mamak, Ankara. But today’s atrocities have even exceeded those of September 12. Today, people are jailed without any questioning... But people’s anger is piling up... Victims from all sides can come together and build the desired Turkey.”
About the referendum, Eliaçık said it is an opportunity to ‘raise voice against the failing policies of the government.’
Source: https://www.birgun.net/haber-detay/28-subat-magdurlari-bugunku-zulum-28-subat-i-gecti-148532.html