How the Ergenekon Verdicts May Deepen Turkey’s Political Divide
By Pelin Turugt
Aug. 05, 2013
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After a five year trial, verdicts were handed down against 275 defendants (including formal generals, parliamentarians and journalists) who were charged of plotting to overthrow the islamist-leaning government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It has become a symbol of the growing divide between the government and its supporters, and secularists who accuse it of trying to prevent dissent on the other. They were charged for forming a "terrorist organization" as their said plan was to feed social unrest by staging bombs, and a reason for the military to get involved. Among the defendants were formal General lliker Basbug (who claims to be innocent and framed by politicians) sentenced to life in prison and three opposition MPs to between 12 and 35 years. 21 others were acquitted. The trial showed that turkey was willing to accept democracy and put down a history of military roles through coup. prime minister got to this point over time by passing laws to diminish the militaries power until he could eventually arrest the people he needed to. What started as the discovery of some grenades in a small town kicked off the investigation that led to the trial and led to many people being arrested and imprisoned, some for no good reason. Lot of people were in favor of the investigation because it shined light on the corruption of the country. The credibility of the trial came into question as they found inconsistencies in the trial. Some people started to protest and were put down by the government. The defendants can still appeal, but it can take 4-5 years. Protest is widespread throughout the country.
I have mixed feelings on this article. On one hand, these people were standing up to the government and what they believed in, but on the other hand, they were performing terrorist acts. I also find in impressive that the Prime minister was able to solve the problem of the power of the Turkey military by slowly creating laws to diminish their power and eventually getting to the point of being able to arrest them. I also find it interesting how they discovered that Turkey was willing to accept democracy. In my opinion, this could be the start of positive change in their country.
This article relates to political life in turkey, because in Turkey, the military has too much power. The government is standing up to them and the power is starting to shift. However, they imprisoned many people for going against the government. The People acted against it in violent ways and it led to their imprisonment. A change in politics/who's in power could lead to a change in Portugal. The country is becoming democratic, but it is hard to do and causing many problems including protests. There is an upcoming change in Turkey's politics and this could possibly be only the beginning.