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| Mehmet Ali Birand |
Birand wrote in a column on Tuesday that prosecutors are doing their jobs despite claims that either the Fethullah Gülen community is using prosecutors or the police force is using prosecutors to put the government in a tough position because of its support for MİT’s negotiations with members of the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to find a solution to the country’s long-lasting Kurdish issue.
“We already know what MİT does. We realize that Hakan Fidan is among the prime minister’s most trusted people. Haven’t you asked yourself why we have taken such a risk and decision to question a person trusted by the prime minister? Are we dumb? We have such evidence that we cannot ignore,” wrote Birand in his column, quoting a member of the judiciary.
At the heart of the investigation into MİT personnel is the suspected collaboration between the Kurdish Communities Union (KCK) and MİT officials who infiltrated the KCK to gather intelligence about the organization but allegedly ended up involved in illegal activities, including attacks masterminded by the KCK.
Birand also pointed out in his column that MİT agents work freely without being accountable and without limits. Birand wrote that the police’s list regarding accusations against the members of the MİT is of high concern.
“The government turns a blind eye to this, the PKK thinks that these people are their members, and in those circumstances, agents walk freely. They are among the most wanted. They walk freely on the [Turkish-Iraqi] border. They are not subject to inspection but they are involved in criminal acts. Is police going to free them? Are we going to turn a blind eye to their crimes? … If they are MİT agents, they should not be caught. They are caught because they were throwing Molotov cocktails [at police or civilians]. They should have been really careful,” Birand quoted a prosecutor as saying.
Birand also wrote that Fidan, head of MİT, has not been accused of anything but was invited by the prosecutor to testify.
Prosecutors told Birand that “nobody is above the law; nobody or any institution is untouchable.”
Asking prosecutors, Birand wrote: “Why didn’t you tell MİT officials that they are being accused? If you had done, then there would not have been a public debate about all this.”
Birand then quoted the prosecutors as answering: “We don’t act this way. We do not knock at the doors of institutions and ask for information. There are either crimes or not. … We are not against the Kurdish policies of the government. We act to bring MİT officials who are suspects to justice.”
Published on Today's Zaman, 15 February 2012, Wednesday
