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ERGENEKON AND THE BANALITY OF EVIL
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Aug 27 2013
Dexter Filkins of The New Yorker magazine and Nobel Prize laureate
and MIT Professor Peter Diamond penned two important articles about
the Ergenekon trial.
Whereas the former claimed that evidence was simply fabricated for the
Ergenekon case, the latter argued that "there was no credible basis"
for determining that eight academics and engineers were guilty. They
are right to point out human rights violations from a Western liberal
perspective, given the methodological mistakes made during the trial
and the excessive length of detentions. Perhaps one can even argue
that the trial deviated from its purpose. Yet, Mr. Filkins' and Mr.
Diamond's accounts are inaccurate, as they only reflect the problems
of a five-year-long case with hundreds of detainees and an indictment
millions of pages long.
Furthermore, they condone the essence of the trial but do not
have a good understanding of Turkish politics and history. Turkish
history demonstrates that Ergenekon is a deep state organization that
penetrated both society and the bureaucracy. Attempting to overthrow
various governments through a coup d'etat, committing mass murders of
Kurds and Armenians, fostering cooperation between the military and
ultra-Kemalist non-government organizations to mobilize masses and
delegitimize an elected government and most importantly, asserting
military control over civilian power are just a few of Ergenekon's
plots. Despite the court's 19 verdicts of a life sentence and the
punishment of the majority of the detainees, it is unclear whether
Turkey has fully confronted Ergenekon's evil past and most importantly,
its own.
Yes and No.
The Ergenekon trial has a symbolic meaning, as it partly eradicated the
most clandestine organization in Turkish history and to some extent
satisfied the wishes of those who were the victims of Ergenekon,
particularly the conservatives. Punishing Ergenekon network members
simply meant a departure from Turkey's oppressive history, but using
retributive justice measures created a perception of revenge among
many. Political conflicts and polarization can be healthy, as they
reveal the weaknesses of a political system and pressure points
in society. If used wisely, they present important opportunities
for nations to address existing problems. However, the Ergenekon
trial further polarized Turkey into two main camps; conservatives
and secularists. Beginning in 2008, the Ergenekon trial gradually
became instrumental in the mainly pro-Kemalist secularists' loss of
Staatsvolk status. Given the fact that the secularists lost their
privileges and the conservatives rose to power and filled important
positions within the state apparatus, we experienced a fierce but
facile politicization of Ergenekon.
Recall Deniz Baykal, former leader of the Republican People's Party
(CHP), who said he was the lawyer for the Ergenekon detainees and Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's statement that he was the prosecutor
for the Ergenekon trial. From post-World War II Germany to Gladio
in Italy and the decommunization of Eastern Europe, such trials are
naturally controversial. Furthermore, such cases usually do not allow
the public to have a meaningful debate about the evil past of a cabal
or the state itself. For instance, many detainees claimed that it was
legal to organize a coup d'etat because the Turkish military's internal
codes allowed them, as the dominant power in politics, to identify an
internal threat and, if necessary, react accordingly. The alleged coup
d'etat plans clearly show that the military was willing to kill its
own people to protect the Kemalist nation state. Despite the important
punishments, many in Turkey still believe that the Ergenekon network
members are innocent. In other words, this is the banality of evil.
If politicization of the Ergenekon trial was one reason for a lack
of meaningful debate, the court's choice not to investigate the
infamous Susurluk accident and mass killings of Kurds and influential
intellectuals limited the debate. This missed opportunity could
facilitate a discussion about past crimes of the Turkish state and
its clandestine organizations that would probably get more support
from society. For instance, the Kurds criticized the Ergenekon trial
because the court focused only on coup d'etat attempts and ignored the
Kurdish dimension. It is not difficult to conclude that the Justice
and Development Party (AK Party) government confronted only those who
challenged it and remained indifferent to cases that could potentially
unearth the state apparatus' misconduct against its own citizens.
Despite human rights violations, the Ergenekon trial had important
symbolic meaning and was instrumental in the demilitarization of
Turkey. Yet, since Turkey did not have a meaningful discussion about
its dark past, it is likely that the Ergenekon saga will continue in
the near future, further polarizing the country. The question is now,
how do we deal with Ergenekon properly -- ensuring fundamental human
rights -- but still unearth the truth?
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnistDetail_getNewsById.action?newsId=324630
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Aug 27 2013
Dexter Filkins of The New Yorker magazine and Nobel Prize laureate
and MIT Professor Peter Diamond penned two important articles about
the Ergenekon trial.
Whereas the former claimed that evidence was simply fabricated for the
Ergenekon case, the latter argued that "there was no credible basis"
for determining that eight academics and engineers were guilty. They
are right to point out human rights violations from a Western liberal
perspective, given the methodological mistakes made during the trial
and the excessive length of detentions. Perhaps one can even argue
that the trial deviated from its purpose. Yet, Mr. Filkins' and Mr.
Diamond's accounts are inaccurate, as they only reflect the problems
of a five-year-long case with hundreds of detainees and an indictment
millions of pages long.
Furthermore, they condone the essence of the trial but do not
have a good understanding of Turkish politics and history. Turkish
history demonstrates that Ergenekon is a deep state organization that
penetrated both society and the bureaucracy. Attempting to overthrow
various governments through a coup d'etat, committing mass murders of
Kurds and Armenians, fostering cooperation between the military and
ultra-Kemalist non-government organizations to mobilize masses and
delegitimize an elected government and most importantly, asserting
military control over civilian power are just a few of Ergenekon's
plots. Despite the court's 19 verdicts of a life sentence and the
punishment of the majority of the detainees, it is unclear whether
Turkey has fully confronted Ergenekon's evil past and most importantly,
its own.
Yes and No.
The Ergenekon trial has a symbolic meaning, as it partly eradicated the
most clandestine organization in Turkish history and to some extent
satisfied the wishes of those who were the victims of Ergenekon,
particularly the conservatives. Punishing Ergenekon network members
simply meant a departure from Turkey's oppressive history, but using
retributive justice measures created a perception of revenge among
many. Political conflicts and polarization can be healthy, as they
reveal the weaknesses of a political system and pressure points
in society. If used wisely, they present important opportunities
for nations to address existing problems. However, the Ergenekon
trial further polarized Turkey into two main camps; conservatives
and secularists. Beginning in 2008, the Ergenekon trial gradually
became instrumental in the mainly pro-Kemalist secularists' loss of
Staatsvolk status. Given the fact that the secularists lost their
privileges and the conservatives rose to power and filled important
positions within the state apparatus, we experienced a fierce but
facile politicization of Ergenekon.
Recall Deniz Baykal, former leader of the Republican People's Party
(CHP), who said he was the lawyer for the Ergenekon detainees and Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's statement that he was the prosecutor
for the Ergenekon trial. From post-World War II Germany to Gladio
in Italy and the decommunization of Eastern Europe, such trials are
naturally controversial. Furthermore, such cases usually do not allow
the public to have a meaningful debate about the evil past of a cabal
or the state itself. For instance, many detainees claimed that it was
legal to organize a coup d'etat because the Turkish military's internal
codes allowed them, as the dominant power in politics, to identify an
internal threat and, if necessary, react accordingly. The alleged coup
d'etat plans clearly show that the military was willing to kill its
own people to protect the Kemalist nation state. Despite the important
punishments, many in Turkey still believe that the Ergenekon network
members are innocent. In other words, this is the banality of evil.
If politicization of the Ergenekon trial was one reason for a lack
of meaningful debate, the court's choice not to investigate the
infamous Susurluk accident and mass killings of Kurds and influential
intellectuals limited the debate. This missed opportunity could
facilitate a discussion about past crimes of the Turkish state and
its clandestine organizations that would probably get more support
from society. For instance, the Kurds criticized the Ergenekon trial
because the court focused only on coup d'etat attempts and ignored the
Kurdish dimension. It is not difficult to conclude that the Justice
and Development Party (AK Party) government confronted only those who
challenged it and remained indifferent to cases that could potentially
unearth the state apparatus' misconduct against its own citizens.
Despite human rights violations, the Ergenekon trial had important
symbolic meaning and was instrumental in the demilitarization of
Turkey. Yet, since Turkey did not have a meaningful discussion about
its dark past, it is likely that the Ergenekon saga will continue in
the near future, further polarizing the country. The question is now,
how do we deal with Ergenekon properly -- ensuring fundamental human
rights -- but still unearth the truth?
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnistDetail_getNewsById.action?newsId=324630