Coup Intact: Seeking Rights Still a Crime

A most recent example of which could be seen in Monday's mass circulation Turkish daily Hurriyet in an article by Fatih Cekirge that accused, on behalf of officials, relatives of Turkish soldiers killed in action in the Southeast for reacting to the deaths and branded their verbal frustration as an instrument of terror.

Onen said the so-called "democracy with muscle" created after the 1980 coup era had in today's Turkey "declared seeking rights an offence and made it illegal". He said "it creates a situation where it appears as if the state of Turkey cannot be in harmony with international values on human rights".

Referring to Cekirge's report in Hurriyet that referred to anti-war protests as being part of a terror plot against Turkey, Onen said "this news report regards being against war as an act of terror and related to terror organizations. I do not believe it is the product only of Cekirge's pen or a deep conversation. This is result of a psychological operation that has been planned since September 12. This operation is a strategy to make all democratic leaps, the act of using democratic rights an offence".

"Operation to Suppress Society"

Bianet interviewed Yavuz Onen on the consequences of the 1980 military coup, those who conducted it, today's Turkey and what it meant to be an advocate of human rights..

What kind of barrier does September 12 and its consequences place in front of today's human rights advocacy?

The September 12 law became institutionalized and is continuing by developing. It re-created itself at every stage. It laid the ground for law in Turkey. It destroyed the concept of democracy. A deformed 'muscle democracy' hence became perceived as democracy. September 12 laid the ground for muscle democracy, in other words the authoritarian regime.

This was a project to end all oppositions and particularly the left whichever name it existed under. This was a Cold War method. As result of it, they put political Islam in power.

This period continues. The greatest barrier in front of us is the September 12 constitution. Not only written documents but also understanding is also a barrier. Before anything, an atmosphere needs to be created to amend the constitution.

As for the today's governments that are products of September 12, they hold on to the constitution with all their might and they do not change it.

This declares it illegal to seek justice, rights. There is a situation where it appears that the state of Turkey cannot harmonize with international values of human rights.

Hurriyet's headline, meanwhile, evaluates being against war as an act of terror or something in relation to a terror organization. I do not believe this comes from Cekirge's pen alone, or from a deep conversation.

This is the result of a psychological operation that has been planned since September 12. The September 12 strategy is a strategy of making all democratic leaps and all acts of using democratic rights an offence.

We come across this situation in daily life every day. The democracy process which we thought had started in 2000 has not been able to overcome September 12 either.

It is frequently voiced that Argentina is similar to Turkey. Argentina can put their coup leaders on trial. Why does this not happen in Turkey?

Leave putting them on trial in Turkey alone, those who have served the coup are being rewarded instead, placed under protection. The only person who lives a life in luxury under constant protection is not [1980 coup leader general] Kenan Evren. The richest generals came out of the September 12 generals...

The state has the problem of coming face to face with reality. Facing 30 years of a bloody past is tense. The society needs to face this past.

Today in Turkey there is the will to make the concept of war a civilian concept. For the war between the Turkish Armed Forces and the PKK to take a civilian angle brings the threat of being directed to civil war. They want the society to actively be a part of this. They want to spread the culture of conflict to the civilian environment.

Developments over the funerals held for martyrs are a product of this. Even though the mothers, fathers, are quite straightforward and crying out with feelings of humanity, they are being displayed as an instrument of terror in Cekirge's article.

This is an operation to siege the society and suppress it in order to force those against war back.

September 12 still continues. It does so by renewing itself, through sophisticated methods.

Because of this the activities carried out yesterday against September 12 are ver meaningful. Suggestions that all of those responsible for the September 12 should be identified and put on trial are correct.

Is there no way out of this system created on September 12?

Opposition policies need to use a more effective language and program. Political organizations need to work more, come into the foreground, and create a dialogue with the people on democratic grounds.

Because the propaganda accusing those calling for peace is very strong... Humanitarian values are being portrayed as if they were treason.

Because of this, the process of an effective program for a political leap needs to be started. I believe that it is the leftwing opposition that could do this.

If there is to be a way out, this will definitely come from the left. Because what they have tried to destroy for 40 years is the left. The left needs to be effective in active politics.

One needs to recall the example of the Workers Party of Turkey here. It is possible to be an organized and effective voice in the field of politics. This is not an issue of having a majority. It is an issue of existence. Demands should not be restricted only to the concept of democracy. For instance demands for conditions should be made for the electoral barrier and to be represented in the Political Parties Law.

Because they are changing the agenda, attention is being distracted from these critical problems. The manipulation in Turkey's largest newspaper, an attempt by a journalist to converse with the prime minister and those around him to create public opinion, shows we are at a crucial point.

One of the main targets of September 12 was to suppress the labor movement and integrate Turkey into neoliberalizm. With this in mind, should human rights advocacy not address labor?

Of course. The greatest unjust in the world stems from economic division. Hunger, poverty, unemployment, inequality in shares, rights violations come at top of the list.

Because of this reason it could be said that defending human rights is defending the rights of the laborers.

Neo-liberal policies only increase the pain of this unjust. Defending rights in the classic sense is not limited to negative rights -personal rights. It has to have a perspective including economic, social, cultural rights. In Turkey this is the way we have always looked at defending human rights. (TK/II/YE)