General Staff: No Registry

After a controversy began in Turkey over news that the Ground Forces Commandment instructed district governors to keep registers about "-Pro-U.S., Pro-EU people; members of Klux-Klux Klan; minority groups; jet-set; separatist groups", the General Staff said in a written statement Tuesday that "The issue is under the responsibility of the administrative officials and the garrison commanders. As claimed by some groups, it has no connection with the Ground Forces Commandment and especially the Commander himself."

The Secretary General's Office of the General Staff said that the practice -which is now dubbed by the society as "High-society registry- has been distorted and "NO one has ever been registered" and "No instructions were given for this purpose."

The statement said that this was an "Internal practice" of the Turkish Armed Forces and described the statements made on the issue as "Reaching worrisome dimensions."

The statement said that, when government realized that they were unable to provide order in their areas, they could seek the help of the nearest military commander who in turn, makes use of gendarme and the police in urgent situations. "It is clear that, the success of the commander, before developments in that place, reach uncontrollable dimensions, depends on him to collect information and carry out training and intelligence work.

In fact the Province Administration Law No 5442 and a protocol between the Interior Ministry and General Staff, foresees such an activity."

"The flash and distorted title of "Registry" which was written by our press, has nothing to do with our practice. No one was registered and no unit was assigned such a duty. Therefore our people must be in peace. "

The statement said that "The requests (in the military circular letter to governors) related to destructive and separatist activities, constituted almost the whole of the letter of the Ground Forces) The three times in the letter, which were reported by the press, are demands which went over their intentions and a fault of the officers who have a deficiency of training. This is an internal issue of the armed forces. Work has immediately begun and will be continued to correct this.

"Every activity of personnel contains faults of human beings. The saddening thing is that, such a fault was identified with and generalized over a whole institution and accusations have been made against the wrong authorities and personalities..." (NM)