INVESTIGATION REVEALS YET ANOTHER COUP PLOT

Today’s Zaman
July 8 2008
Turkey

The investigation into Ergenekon, a dark neo-nationalist organization
with former senior army generals and journalists among its members
seeking to engineer a coup against the Justice and Development Party
(AK Party) government, has revealed that in 2004 Turkey narrowly
escaped three potential coups d’état, one more than had previously
been reported by the media.

Newspapers yesterday reported that documents seized during last week’s
raids in the Ergenekon investigation suggested that in addition to
two coup plans, codenamed Sarıkız (blonde girl) and AyıÅ~_ıgı
(m oonlight), a third one by the name of Eldiven (the glove) was also
in the works.

A document titled "Eldiven" found in the home of Gen. Å~^ener Eruygur,
a former force commander of the gendarmerie currently under arrest
on charges of founding and being a leader of the Ergenekon terrorist
organization, shows in great detail the third coup attempt previously
unknown to the media and the prosecution. Eldiven, according to
reports, appears to be an extension of the failed Sarıkız and
AyıÅ~_ıgÄ&#xB1 ; coup plots.

The plan’s introduction states that "there is discordance within the
Turkish Armed Forces [TSK]" on the matter of supporting coup plans
and proposes remedies to get over this "obstacle."

The main purpose of Eldiven is to "shape the TSK, Parliament, the
bureaucracy and local governments and rewrite the Constitution,
the entire legislation and the National Security Policy
Document." According to the plan, cell organizations of people from
different segments of society would be formed. These would be unaware
of each other’s existence and work without knowing the real aim they
serve, although they would all be serving the same ultimate purpose.

The plan also writes in detail what kind of psychological warfare
tactics would be used to shape public opinion. The first stage of the
plan consisted of ensuring consensus nationwide. The plan sought to
shape the decisions to come out of the Supreme Military Council (YAÅ~^)
by talking to journalists and having them publish the ideas of generals
currently active in the military. The plan also planned to use the
effectiveness of then-President Ahmet Necdet Sezer in shaping YAÅ~^.

Like the two other plans revealed before it, Eldiven also hoped to
rely on media support and on financially supporting some of the media
organs to publish news that would exhaust liberals or democrats and
move public opinion to support the army’s plans.

Meanwhile, Chief of General Staff Gen. YaÅ~_ar Buyukanıt, when asked
a question on the Ergenekon operation following a meeting yesterday of
the chiefs of general staff of Balkan countries in the Mediterranean
province of Antalya, declined to comment, saying he would only take
questions about the chiefs of general staff meeting, NATO, security
and EU relations.

A short history of Turkey’s coup leaders

Turkey has seen three coups in the last five decades, but no commander
has ever been prosecuted or convicted for overthrowing the civilian
government until now. Kenan Evren, the retired general who staged the
1980 coup, is currently enjoying retirement in a southern resort town
and keeping himself busy with painting.

In a sign that this may be changing, retired Gen. Eruygur, currently
the chairman of the Ataturkist Thought Association (ADD), which helped
organize mass anti-government demonstrations last year, and HurÅ~_it
Tolon, a former commander of the 1st Army Corps, were arrested after
testifying in court during their time in custody.

The two were taken into custody on July 1 as part of an investigation
into Ergenekon, a gang suspected of having planned a shooting at the
Council of State in 2006 which resulted in the death of a senior judge;
an attack on the Ä°stanbul headquarters of the Cumhuriyet newspaper;
and even the killing of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink,
who was gunned down by an ultranationalist teenager over a year ago.

Eruygur is being mentioned as a key accomplice along with three other
force commanders in a diary allegedly kept by a former navy commander
detailing failed plans to overthrow the AK Party.

Eruygur was a leading figure among the organizers of so-called
republican rallies held ahead of July elections last year in protest
of the AK Party government. His name was also mentioned in documents
leaked to the press proving the existence of the two failed coup
attempts, AyıÅ~_ıgı and Sarıkız, plotted when Eruygur was still
in the military. Tolon was known for making frequent appearances at
symposiums and conferences organized by ultranationalists. This is
the first time generals of such high rank are being detained in Turkey.

–Boundary_(ID_YpeSqnPrgLg1FLveya+HJA)–