TURKEY - A NATION ON THE EDGE

Turkey, a member of NATO since 1952, has been making impressive economic strides of late but behind the feel good factor and the booming tourist industry seventy million people are torn between western-style secularism and the demands of Islam.
In the coming weeks, the Turkish courts will have to decide if they should try 86 Turks, some of them former senior army officers, for plotting to overthrow the Islamic government of the country. The recent indictment of the 89 reflects a serious power struggle between the Islamic administration of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and groupings who believe the secular Turkey of its founder, Kemal Ataturk is under threat from a government that is cleverly seeking to introduce Sharia Law and establish a theocracy of the type ruling Iran.
Ironically the same courts may also have to rule on whether the Prime Minister and 70 members of his ruling party should be banned from holding office for five years for trying to overturn laws banning the wearing of head scarves at universities. Erdogan was a former leader of the country Islamic movement but now denied his government is trying to undermine Turkey’s secularism system. In an effort to show he does not intent to promote Islamic ideals he constantly points to his efforts to have Turkey accepted into the EU. That plan has so far been put on the long finger by EU members like France and Germany, who fear that admitting Turkey would be tantamount to increasing the Islamic population of the EU.
Turkey’s president, Abdullah Gul, who took office in 2007, also has a history in Islamic politics and was a leading figure in a party that was once banned by the State. He subsequently became one of the founders of the governing AK Party and has also been prominent in advocating EU membership. Many secularists see the AK party as a Trojan horse, formed for the sole purpose of eroding western values and shaping a nation based on Islamic principles.
While the debate goes on between secularists and AK supporters, nothing is as black and white as it seems in this complex nation. Straddling the politics of the country is its military, which believes it is the true guardian of the secular principles of Kemal Ataturk. In 2007, it showed it had little respect for Abdullah Gul when it boycotted his swearing in-ceremony. It is more closely aligned with the strict nationalist, Republic People’s Party.
In the months before Gul and Erdogan took over the reins of power the army warned it would not hesitate to defend the country’s secular values. That was intended to be a shot across the vows of the AK party and its followers. With that in mind, some observers wonder if it is wise for Gul and Erdogan to proceed with a trial of the 89 alleged plotters because it could lead to a witch hunt that might raise questions about whether the military knew about the alleged plot.
For all its claims to be a modern European nation, Turkey falls far short on several levels. First, while there is a vast media, it is generally unwise for journalists or editors to encourage debate about the military, Islamic issues or unsavory aspects of the country’s past. There have been numerous examples of journalists being imprisoned for daring to question the status quo.
Second, the role of the army bears no resemblance to any EU nation. In 1960, the army overthrew the government and hanged the prime minister and two of his colleagues. In 1971, 1980 and 1997, the army again intervened. In 1997, it threw out an Islamist administration and installed pro-western secular leaders.
The US and its NATO allies rarely criticize the Turkish military though Washington has on several occasions persuaded it to adopt a less confrontational approach to Turkish politics. Turkey as an important ally and its geographical importance cannot be underestimated. It is a strategic link to Asia and Europe and is also a gateway to the Black Sea, which is one of the most important bodies of water in the world through which trade in oil, gas and many other commodities links many nations from East and West. It also borders hot spots like Iraq, Syria and Iran. For those reasons alone, what happens in Turkey is closely scrutinized in Washington and at NATO HQ.
Observers in western capitals will be closely watching how the ruling AK party deals with the planned prosecution of the 89 alleged plotters and what impact it will have on the country’s military. Prime Minister, Tayyip Erdogan has warned that he intends to destroy what he calls “a deep state network” comprising members of the military, police, business, press and ultra nationalist organizations. Such a move could open up a can of worms in a country like Turkey and lead to yet another military coup.