Turkey’s failed coup: Never again

 
Punto24 (Platform for Independence Journalism) counts the thwarting of the coup attempt on July 15 – which sought to overthrow the democratically elected members of Parliament and the president, and at the same time, directly targeted the people – during which civilians were ruthlessly murdered, a grand opportunity for a new beginning.

Had the coup not failed, Turkey most likely would have been drawn into a bloody civil war; the voice of Parliament, political parties, civil society and the media would have been completely silenced. We would be living in a hellish nightmare.
Fortunately, the coup attempt was foiled. It makes us sincerely happy that the people of Turkey have shown that they will never again bow before coups d’état.

We remember the conscientious and brave people who lost their lives on the night of July 15 confronting military tanks and fighting off the attempted coup with utmost gratitude and respect.

Now is the time to make use of this grand opportunity. Turkey, which has recently averted an enormous danger, should never condemn itself to unlawful practices – the staple of coup periods.

It is imperative that civilian-military relations are reformed in a profound and lasting way, to ensure that there will never be another coup attempt and that coupism is out of the Turkish Armed Forces’ (TSK) agenda permanently, and that a democratic new constitution is drafted through a process that includes all segments of society to put this opportunity to good use.

We hope to see the peace talks revived – this time with constitutional guarantees –  in order to establish permanent peace between Turkey and its Kurdish citizens; that weapons are silenced in the true sense of the meaning and that all citizens of the Republic can feel herself as an equal and first-class citizen, regardless of her ethnic background.

It is also essential that those who have attempted this coup d’état account for their actions before the law and that all the questions regarding who planned the coup and how, their motives are answered beyond any doubt in the eyes of the domestic and international community and that those who are behind the coup attempt, whoever and wherever they may be, are delivered to justice.

It is also crucial that the authorities refrain from any rights violations while trying to achieve this end.

Torture is a crime against humanity. Testimony extracted under torture cannot be accepted as evidence in a courtroom. Torture practices were the chief feature of Turkey’s dark history of coups; a period to which Turkey should never return again.

State of Emergency conditions, declared after the failed coup attempt, should be put into practice on the basis of fundamental rights and freedoms that can’t be suspended under any circumstances. The most prominent among these rights are the right to life and freedom from torture and maltreatment.

Turkey’s suspension of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) doesn’t stop torture from being a crime against humanity.

The authorities should ensure that State of Emergency practices in place to ensure that the coupists answer before the law remain limited, and that the State of Emergency is lifted in the shortest possible time.

We understand that measures need to be taken to make sure that the coupists answer before justice and to prevent another attempt, and we support the adoption of such measures. However, the current State of Emergency practices based on collective punishment without evidence, a sense of vengeance, punishing without trial; tens of thousands being removed from public service jobs with no evidence and without the possibility of an appeal creates the impression that the rule of law is being destroyed. These practices also ruin the lives of thousands of families; opening wounds that will likely prove too deep to heal. An enormous crime committed by a gang should not cause suffering to millions of individuals unassociated with that crime.

The July 15 coup attempt has proven to all that most of Turkish media, including both pro-government and critical elements, stand against the overthrowing of the elected government by the military. This is an important aspect of the opportunity that we’ve said we now have.

The crucial role played by print, visual and digital media as well as social media in thwarting the coup is self-evident. State of Emergency conditions should not be abused to prevent journalists across Turkey from doing their jobs and they certainly shouldn’t threaten the freedom of our colleagues who wield no weapons but their keyboards, cameras and microphones; who have nothing to do with F16 fighter jets, or with coups or coupists.

Journalism is not a crime. A free media is the strongest insurance for democracy.

As Punto24, we will continue our work to support that journalism is conducted freely under State of Emergency conditions. We will compile and publish reports titled “Journalists in State of Emergency,” monitoring the numbers of journalists detained or arrested in the post coup organizations, with the hope that these reports can serve to prevent rights violations against journalists.

The people of Turkey deserve to live under a democratic, egalitarian and free order, where all the components remain within the limits of the law. We should all work together to create that order, so that an attempt like that of July 15 never takes place again.