Today’s Zaman
ErdoÄ?an vows to abolish EMASYA protocol, revise security priorities
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an vowed to abolish the controversial
EMASYA protocol yesterday when he participated in a live program on
TRT 1, during which the editors-in-chief of the Zaman, Star, Sabah and
AkÅ?am dailies interviewed him.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an vowed to abolish the controversial
EMASYA protocol yesterday when he participated in a live program on
TRT 1, during which the editors-in-chief of the Zaman, Star, Sabah and
AkÅ?am dailies interviewed him.
In the clearest message yet, the Turkish prime minister vowed on
Sunday to get rid of a controversial covert protocol that allows
military operations to be carried out over internal security matters,
saying all necessary steps — both legal and administrative — would
be taken to abolish the document.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an also signaled that the government
will revise national security priorities to reflect current challenges
and will likely drop internal threat assessments that have nothing to
do with real concerns. He further reiterated that the government plans
to hold national elections in July 2011 as scheduled.
The Protocol on Cooperation for Security and Public Order
(EMASYA), which authorizes the military to conduct operations and
intelligence gathering in cities without the approval of the civilian
administration, has recently risen to the top of the Turkish agenda in
connection with an alleged military coup plan.
`No such thing as the EMASYA protocol can exist. We are taking
necessary steps to abolish it. We will conclude our work to that end
soon. This is a protocol, not a law. We will make legal changes if
necessary. We will abolish the protocol,’ ErdoÄ?an stated during a live
program on TRT 1 on Sunday. The editors-in-chief of the Zaman, Star,
Sabah and AkÅ?am dailies interviewed the prime minister.
The moderators asked the prime minister whether the EMASYA
protocol would continue to exist after an alleged military coup plan,
titled the Balyoz (Sledgehammer) Security Operation Plan, had been
exposed. `Our minister is coordinating the [government’s] work to
abolish the protocol. We will conclude them soon,’ ErdoÄ?an stated.
The controversial protocol was signed by the General Staff and the
Interior Ministry on July 7, 1997 and empowers the military to
intervene in social incidents on its own initiative. In accordance
with EMASYA, the military can gather intelligence against internal
threats.
Though the protocol was met with harsh criticism by politicians and
analysts over the years, it has remained in force. Shortly after the
Sledgehammer plan made its way into the Turkish newspapers, retired
Gen. Ã?etin DoÄ?an, who is believed to be one of the masterminds behind
the plan, said the document was planned in accordance with EMASYA. The
confession brought a new wave of criticism to EMASYA, with a large
number of public figures calling for the protocol’s removal. The
uproar has prompted Interior Minister BeÅ?ir Atalay to say the
government is working to amend it.
National security priorities will change
ErdoÄ?an also signaled that the government is gearing up to revise the
so-called `National Security Policy Document,’ a resolution that acts
as a guideline for the military in situations of domestic conflict.
`The document has no legal effect whatsoever as it is merely a
resolution,’ the prime minister said, stressing that his government
will take the document up for revision this year in order to get rid
of concerns raised by many in Turkey.
Guidelines expressed in the document, which is known as Turkey’s
`secret constitution,’ are considered to be very controversial as many
civic movements are described as threats to the regime. Many
criticized the document as a relic of the Cold War era. ErdoÄ?an
recalled his earlier remarks last week during which he said: `Seeing
one’s own citizens as a threat, categorizing them into different camps
and devising plots in that direction are things from another century.
This is not worthy of a modern country or an advanced understanding of
democracy.’
ErdoÄ?an promised that his Cabinet will raise the issue in an upcoming
National Security Council (MGK) meeting. `The MGK is not an executive
body but merely an advisory council. We either turn these suggestions
into Cabinet decisions or proceed to make new laws in line with them
if needed,’ he underlined. The prime minister explained that his
government had already done some work on possible revisions to the
security document and will implement them in 2010 as part of the
democratization process launched last year.
The prime minister acknowledged that there are obvious signs that
subversive plans were plotted but cautioned against overusing the word
coup, out of fear that it might give legitimacy to claims. He stated,
however, that the government is fully behind independent prosecutors
who investigate these allegations. `Nothing will be swept under the
rug during our tenure,’ he emphasized, adding that they were trying to
solve all mysterious murders.
ErdoÄ?an also noted that the government will be patient and try to
reduce tension in the country. `This mentality [of coups and plots]
will not change overnight. That is why we are saying we have a lot of
road to cover when we look at the advanced democracies in the world,’
the prime minister said.
Elections to be held in 2011
In an attempt to settle the debate on the date of the next general
elections in Turkey, the prime minister said 2011 would be the year
for elections in Turkey, though it may be earlier than July 2011
considering weather and the summer vacation period. `However, nothing
other than that can be considered. We will hold the elections during
the scheduled time,’ ErdoÄ?an said. `Turkey should get used to this. We
should not be a primitive country that changes its government every 16
months,’ he also said.
The prime minister warned that debates over early elections might hurt
the Turkish economy. `Global capital investors are asking me if we
will have snap elections. I would say definitely not.’
ErdoÄ?an criticizes Minsk mediators over Karabakh
Efforts by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s
(OSCE) Minsk Group, which has striven to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict for more than 17 years, have not been productive, Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an said on Sunday.
Ankara, which last year agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations
with Yerevan and reopen their mutual border, insists on seeing
progress on the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, a
territorial dispute between Baku and Yerevan, in parallel with its own
efforts to normalize relations with Yerevan.
Speaking in an interview broadcast live on a state-owned television
station, ErdoÄ?an reiterated Ankara’s uneasiness over the grounds for
an Armenian Constitutional Court decision on Jan. 12 that found
protocols signed with Turkey in Zurich on Oct. 10 of last year in
conformance with the Armenian Constitution, as the decision included
preconditions and restrictive conditions.
`There has been serious neglect by the Minsk trio,’ ErdoÄ?an added,
referring to the three co-chairs of the Minsk Group — France, Russia
and the United States. `They couldn’t bring this issue to a certain
point in 20 years. If Russia, the US and France had worked hard within
the past 20 years, none of these problems would have emerged; neither
the trouble between us and Armenia nor a trouble between Armenia and
Azerbaijan would remain,’ ErdoÄ?an said, suggesting that Armenia would
have stepped back its occupation of the Azerbaijani territory if the
co-chairs had put significant pressure on it. `The performance of
Russia, America and France was below expectations,’ he said. Ankara
Today’s Zaman
01 February 2010, Monday