ERGENEKON NET CATCHES 39 MORE
Hurriyet
Jan 23 2009
Turkey
ANKARA – Another day, another 39 detainees in the Ergenekon
saga. Mostly police and military officers are taken in, but there is
also a raid on a union and a TV channel. Opponents say the government
is suppressing voices ahead of local elections. The latest Ergenekon
wave swept up 39 people yesterday morning, 20 of who were police and
military officers.
The latest Ergenekon wave swept up 39 people yesterday morning, 20 of
who were police and military officers. The 39 are alleged to be part
of assassination teams directed by Ä°brahim Å~^ahin, an ex-police
officer currently under arrest as part of the Ergenekon case.
Police also raided the Metal Workers’ Union headquarters and the
Eurasia TV, or ART, in Ankara. The union’s president Mustafa Ozbek,
VERSO Survey company’s owner Erhan Göksel, and senior journalist
Unal Ä°nanc were also rounded up.
Police demanded the keys for locked rooms in the union building and the
building’s plans. Another raid was conducted on the Å~^irinoglu Social
and Strategic Research Center, presided over by Ä°nanc. Turkmeneli
Human Rights Association Head SavaÅ~_ Avcı was also taken into
custody. ART, a channel with an anti-Justice and Development Party,
or AKP, stance and with nationalist leanings, resumed broadcasting
from Cyprus.
Among detainees are 17 police officers from a special operations unit,
two non-commissioned officers, three lieutenants, seven journalists,
and five union activists. One of the detainees in Sivas has been
released.
Istanbul Acting Prosecutor Turan Colakkadı said there might be
more detentions based on documents and evidence discovered in the
raids. "Searches are executed under court order. Prosecutors are
immediately informed of the suspectb, who have the right to object
to the court," Colakkadı said.
The searches and confiscations were the subject of controversy due
to the observance of procedural rules. Searches were undertaken in
30 locations in various cities, said Colakkadı. The latest wave
covered 13 cities, including Istanbul, Ankara, Antalya, Bursa,
Hakkari, Elazıg, Igdır, and Hatay. "A supplementary indictment to
the Ergenekon case is in its final stages and will be completed in
a month," said Colakkadı.
Meanwhile, Professor Yalcın Kucuk and deputy leader of Independent
Republic Party, or BCP, Engin Aydın, arrested in an earlier wave of
Ergenekon detentions, were released yesterday.
The Ergenekon case aims to unveil and bring down an alleged
ultra-nationalist gang that has conspired against the government in
an attempt to provoke a coup. Prosecutors describe the alleged gang
as a terrorist organization.
Opposition in uproar, major union prepares a summit Union leaders,
the main opposition Republican People’s Party and detainees’ relatives
condemned the detentions as part of a suppression campaign.
"It is impossible to implicate any union in the Ergenekon case. The
reason for the union’s existence is democracy itself," said President
of the Turkish Confederation of Labor Unions, or TURK-Ä°Å~^ Mustafa
Kumlu. TURK-Ä°Å~^ has decided to hold an extraordinary session to
assess the aftermath of Ozbek’s detention and the Ergenekon case
Monday. Road Workers’ Union President Ramazan Agar also visited
Ozbek’s house. "We are in a time when being a Turk in Turkey is a
crime," said Mustafa Ozbek’s son, Haydar Ozbek.
VERSO’s owner Göksel told reporters before he was taken to a police
station, "Ramazan Akyurek is my greatest enemy." Akyurek is Istanbul
Police’s Intelligence unit chief and is implicated in the murder of
Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink by the Workers’ Party, or Ä°P
leader, Dogu Perincek. Perincek, under arrest in the Ergenekon case,
claimed in 2007 that Akyurek was an Islamist and associated with
religious community chief Fethullah Gulen.
A member of the directors’ board of the Security and Judiciary
Reporters Association, Mehmet Balıkcıoglu, said 50,000 books and
200,000 documents had been seized in the searches. Most of the books
were about Turkey’s founder Ataturk, he said.
"The trade unions have been silenced and media organizations have
been intimidated," said the main opposition Republican People’s Party,
or CHP, spokesman Mustafa Ozyurek. "Turkey is fast becoming an empire
of fear," he said.
Justice Minister Mehmet Ali Å~^ahin said he could not meddle in the
judiciary’s affairs as a minister. Parliament Speaker Köksal Toptan
urged restraint.
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