Turkey's secular government in trouble, general warns
SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Tuesday, September 26, 2006

ANKARA — A leading general has warned that Islam's rising influence threatens Turkey.

The general's warning came in wake of an EU report that the military continues to interfere in Turkish politics, Middle East Newsline reported. The assertion was the first military criticism of Islamic influence under new Chief of Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, regarded as a fierce secularist.

"Today, I am sorry to say that, even if some circles do not accept it, the reactionary [Islamist] threat is reaching alarming proportions," Turkish Land Forces Command chief Gen. Ilker Basbug, said. "Turning religion into an ideology will politicize it, and religion will then be the biggest loser."

In an address on Monday to the Ankara military academy, Basbug said Islamists were destroying Turkey's secular system. The general did not identify the Islamists, but appeared to be referring to the government of Prime Minister Recep Erdogan.
"There are intentional, patient and systematic attempts to erode the [Ataturk secular] revolution," Basbug said. "These [Islamist] communities, which have been growing in power, are trying to guide the course of the economy, shape the socio-political life and manifest their social identity as a way of life based on religious principles. These communities, banned by law, are turning into the hub of movements against the Turkish revolution."

Under Erdogan's rule, the military has been under pressure to retain Islamic officers. Erdogan has also supported efforts by Islamic seminary students to enter civil service and universities.

"The Turkish Armed Forces has always taken sides and will continue to take sides to protect the nation-state, the unitary state and the secular state," Basbug, regarded as the No. 2 commander in the military, said.

Turkish analysts and government sources said they were not surprised by Basbug's warning. They said Buyukanit, who became chief of staff on Aug. 30, would highlight the military's role as a bulwark against efforts to establish an Islamist regime.

Over the weekend, soldiers from a Turkish commando unit marched against the mayor of the southeastern province of Hakkari for his failure to provide municipal services. The soldiers, who were not in uniform, collected garbage during their march.

"No matter how right they are, the security forces of the state cannot hold protests against another public institution," Ersonmez Yarbay, a parliamentarian from Erdogan's party, said. "Protests with banners and slogans undermine the Turkish Armed Forces. The government and the General Staff should seriously deal with this matter."

Erdogan's Justice and Development Party responded to Basbug's address. Parliamentarian Faruk Celik warned the military not to intervene in politics. Since 1960, the military conducted three coups, and in 1997 forced an Islamist-oriented prime minister to resign.

"If there is a reversal in Turkey, if there is [religious] reaction, I want everybody to know the government of the Turkish Republic is the leading force to counter this," Celik said.

The military warning came several days after the EU criticized Turkey's military. The European Commission's envoy to Turkey, Hans-Joerg Kretschmer, said commanders express their views on "almost every aspect of public life." As a condition for membership, the EU has ordered Turkey to reduce the military's influence.

"In my view, the big challenge for Turkey is to create stable institutions able to deliver services, including security, to the citizens of this country in a way that respects democratic principles," Kretschmer said.

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