JOURNALIST AMONG 11 DETAINED IN INQUIRY INTO TURKISH NATIONALISTS

The Guardian
Associated Press
Saturday March 22 2008

Turkish police detained 11 people yesterday in an investigation
into a gang of extreme nationalists who allegedly want to topple the
Islamic-rooted government, local media said.

Detainees included a journalist, a former university president and
the head of a small political party, according to the private NTV
television station.

The website of Ulusal TV station confirmed the detention of Dogu
Perincek, head of the Turkish Workers’ party, which won a tiny
fraction of votes in general elections last summer. It said the
offices of the station, which often carries statements by the party,
were being searched by police.

In 2007 a Swiss court convicted Perincek of racism for denying that the
mass killing of Armenians in the early 20th century was genocide. He
made the claim during trips to Switzerland.

The detained journalist, Ilhan Selcuk, writes a column for the secular
Cumhuriyet newspaper and is a fierce critic of Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s
government.

Military-backed circles of power, which include the state bureaucracy
and judiciary, suspect Erdogan and his allies seek to inject Islam
into political life, undermining the secular principles outlined in
the constitution.

The government denies it wants to erode secularism, citing reforms
it has made to try to gain EU membership.

Authorities had previously arrested several dozen alleged members
of the gang, known as Ergenekon. A retired military commander and a
lawyer were among those arrested earlier, and reports said they are
suspected of plotting to murder Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk, who was
prosecuted under a law barring insults to Turkish identity. Kurdish
leaders, seen by many as a threat to national sovereignty, were also
reportedly on the hit list.

Officials have not commented publicly on the investigation. Most
reports have emerged in local media and are based on anonymous sources.