Very bad things are happening [in Turkey]

Hüseyin Gülerce

Prominent figures, including the prime minister, have placed the Hizmet movement under the spotlight in election campaigns. The prime minister hurls grave insults, details of which I cannot repeat here. He also makes strong accusations as though there has been a judicial decision or conviction. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, defining it as a parallel state, gravely insults the Hizmet movement and Fethullah Gülen.

It is our right to expect some decency in his style given that he is the prime minister of all in this country. We feel sorry because this attitude is not embracing, this attitude is not fair and this attitude is not legal. He is making a grave mistake by directing ungrounded accusations without any legal basis. This will never help the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) or the political administration that is supposed to embrace people by avoiding acts of polarization.

Very bad things are happening. Polarization is deepening. Turkey is divided into two camps. Both camps are building up hate against each other. The opposition parties make clear references to the government as the culprit of corruption in election rallies. The prime minister argues that they are the actual thieves. They are both making strong accusations and resorting to insults as though they will never talk to each other again. Things are getting out of control.

Very bad things are happening. It has been argued that thousands of people, including the prime minister and the president, were wiretapped. A number of voice recordings involving statements by members of the government and of the movement have been leaked to the media to manipulate the law and politics. What could be the result of this?

Very bad things are happening. Turkey is being dragged into unpredictable chaos. The grounds for dialogue and tolerance are disappearing. How will these losses be recovered? Parents, children, wives and husbands are confronting each other due to disagreements. Because of the enthusiasm in election rallies, politicians fail to realize this country is rapidly moving towards chaos. Polarization is being deepened, genuine people feel hurt and the bridges between our people are being destroyed. Those who seek to attain their short-term goals should know that the gravity of the losses in the long run may be immeasurable.

Very bad things are happening. The allegation that the coup cases were illegally conducted has raised suspicions. Those who argue that this is a legitimate argument are trying to provoke the armed forces. The suspects of a huge corruption scandal were released whereas members of the armed forces are still in prison. And this bothers the military. There is huge erosion of trust among state institutions.

Very bad things are happening. The spirit of [the] Feb. 28 [1997 coup] returned in the most recent National Security Council (MGK) meeting where the Hizmet movement was declared a threat and a source of danger upon the request of the civilian members of the council. It is a shame for the civilian administration to remind the armed forces of its role during the period of military tutelage because this allows for the return of the armed forces to the political stage. Has the political administration calculated the repercussions of the armed forces deciding to take action based on global provocations and external developments?

Very bad things are happening. Shutting down prep schools to deal with the so-called parallel state will result in a great disaster in the education sector in a few years. The results of the college admission exam in 2016 will reveal the scope of the disaster. But our sons and daughters will have to face this eventually.

Very bad things are happening. Despite calls by reasonable figures, the actors responsible are behaving as though nothing has happened. No one calls their mistakes a mistake.

We have no other option than to pray.

Published on Today's Zaman, 04 March 2014, Tuesday