RETIRED GENERALS VANISH FROM SCENE

Today’s Zaman
16 August 2008, Saturday
Turkey

Parallel to the capture of retired Gen. Veli Kucuk and other military
personnel and civilians early this year over their alleged role in
the Ergenekon terror organization, retired generals in particular
and former uniformed men in general are nowhere to be seen in the
Turkish media.

The number of retired generals appearing both on television and
in print expressing their views on Turkey and the war in Iraq had
mushroomed since the United States invaded Iraq in 2003. The views
expressed carried with them extreme political content rather than
focusing on analyzing the military aspects of the war — a reflection
of the Turkish Armed Forces’ (TSK) traditional involvement in
political affairs.

These retired generals also used the media spotlight as an opportunity
to attack the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) from
time to time on several foreign and domestic policy issues, triggering
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s comments last year in which he
described the retired generals as "provocateurs."

In November of last year, the TSK prohibited retired officers from
making statements concerning the time they served in the military
to the media, threatening to take away benefits such as subsidized
lodging at military-owned residential complexes.

It was later understood that the ban was directed at retired officers
who were critical of the TSK — in particular after the outlawed
Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) attacked the Daglıca military
headquarters, located in the Southeast near the Iraqi border, in
November of last year, killing 13 Turkish soldiers.

Some retired generals who served in the region in the past accused
the TSK of negligence, and the attack paved the way for Turkey to go
ahead with an aerial bombardment and a ground operation into northern
Iraq. The US supplied real-time intelligence for this incursion.

When Umit Kardat, a retired military judge who is outspoken on
military affairs, once told the media that he was denied entry to
military lodging, speculation arose over whether the military had
banned retired officers who were critical of the TSK and its practices
from enjoying such privileges.

Since the TSK issued the ban, retired officers have continued to appear
in the media, but have limited their criticism to AK Party practices,
though a handful of the retired officers have continued criticizing
the TSK as well.

However, since an investigation was launched into Ergenekon, a crime
network accused of plotting to overthrow the government, soon followed
by an indictment, and since an Ä°stanbul court agreed to hear the case
on Oct. 20, almost all retired officers — by now familiar faces to
Turkish audiences — are nowhere to be seen.

Some retired generals, regular writers for the Cumhuriyet daily —
whose publisher and columnist, Ä°lhan Selcuk, was accused of being
a leader of the Ergenekon terrorist organization and whose Ankara
representative, Mustafa Balbay, was also detained over his alleged
links to the gang — have also stopped writing articles for the daily.

A military source told Today’s Zaman that with the arrest of some
senior generals and the release of the Ergenekon indictment, these
are critical moments. Generals, out of concern for being linked to
Ergenekon or being arrested for being a part of it, have chosen to
no longer appear in the media.

An Ä°stanbul court will begin hearing the trial of 86 defendants,
46 of whom are under arrest, charged with either forming or being
a member of a terrorist organization or of inciting public unrest
and encouraging subordination within the military with the aim of
toppling the ruling AK Party.

As details of the Ergenekon indictment continue to be published by
Turkish dailies, it has become clear that this organization, acting
like a state within a state ("deep state"), has existed for quite
some time and was allegedly behind many criminal acts and politically
motivated assassinations in the country in addition to planning to
overthrow the ruling AK Party government. These plans have only been
a part of its many alleged unlawful acts. Operations against those
allegedly linked to Ergenekon continue. The Ä°stanbul residence
of retired Col. Arif Dogan, said to be a founder of JÄ°TEM — an
intelligence unit in the gendarmerie whose existence is officially
denied, was raided on Thursday night. The police seized ammunition,
including 280 hand grenades and other weapons. An additional two
individuals were detained in Ankara.

Jail food just got better

Meanwhile, inmates and employees of Kandıra Prison in Kocaeli report
satisfaction over the higher quality of food now available to them,
which they say happened thanks to a large number of high-profile
Ergenekon suspects, including retired senior generals.

Inmates and wards at the Kocaeli prison say that the food has improved
since retired senior generals Å~^ener Eruygur, who also heads the
Ataturk Thought Association (ADD), and HurÅ~_it Tolon were moved to
the prison. The inmates say that, in addition to the higher quality,
the amount of meat in meals has also significantly increased.

However, soon the senior generals will be moved to another prison in
Silivri, after which inmates and prison wards fear that the food will
return to its former state. Current guests at Kandıra Prison include
superstars of the crime world such as Sedat Peker, Alattin Cakıcı,
Erol Evcil and Vedat Ergin. Ogun Samast, the teenager who shot dead
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink in 2007 – a crime of which
Ergenekon is also suspected — is also an inmate at Kandıra prison.

16 August 2008, Saturday

LALE SARIÄ°BRAHÄ°MOÄ~^LU ANKARA

–Boundary_(ID_iEEBcFR8SVqQSYnTREbkvg)–

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress