The Good News and the Bad News About Turkey's Attempted Coup
Published on
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
by
The Progressive
The Good News and the Bad News About Turkey's Attempted Coup
by
Stephen Zunes
Anti-coup demonstrators in Turkey last over the weekend. (Photo by Lubunya)
The survival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his ruling
Justice and Welfare Party of an attempted coup last week is a mixed
blessing.
Despite the ultra-conservative policies and creeping authoritarianism of the
Erdogan regime, Turks from across the political spectrum opposed the coup,
which was attempted by a faction of the Turkish military.
As the putschists were claiming they had seized state power, Erdogan-instead
of calling for armed resistance-used FaceTime to appeal to the nation: "I
urge the Turkish people to convene at public squares and airports. There is
no power higher than the power of the people."
In response, hundreds of thousands of supporters took to the streets and
faced down the putschists, despite scores of unarmed protesters being killed
by tanks, attack helicopters, and snipers.
The good news is that the coup's failure may be a sign that, for the first
time in history, Turkey's elected government has successfully imposed
civilian rule over the military. Having experienced military rule a number
of times in recent history, the Turkish public recognized a military regime
would probably be even worse. They also saw what happened in Egypt, where
liberal democrats initially cheered the military coup against Morsi and the
Muslim Brotherhood only to find themselves under a brutal military
dictatorship.
Turks' resistance to the coup demonstrates that the Turkish military no
longer has the overbearing role it had for so many decades, effectively
exercising veto power from behind the scenes. On four previous occasions,
they easily seized power from democratically elected governments.
The bad news is that the apparent success in resisting the military may not
be used for democratic ends.
Indeed, Erdogan and his AKP is already using the coup attempt as an excuse
to crack down even harder on dissent. In just a matter of hours, Turkish
president Erdogan ordered the jailing of more than 6,000 people, including
2,745 judges and prosecutors, for allegedly supporting the coup attempt.
Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry has fired close to 9,000 people across
country, including thirty governors.
Observers seriously doubt that a government not known for its efficiency
could have carried out any credible investigations with such speed. There is
little doubt Erdogan is using this as an excuse to consolidate his rule and
eliminate checks on his power.
Turkey's coup was largely defeated by massive nonviolent resistance, adding
to a list of countries where military putschists have been overwhelmed by
people power: Germany (1923), France (1962), Bolivia (1979), Argentina
(1987), Russia (1991), Haiti (1992), Thailand (1992), Venezuela (2002) and
Burkina Faso (2015). Just because the military may take over government
buildings and proclaim itself in charge doesn't mean people will recognize
its authority or agree to cooperate.
But it was not exclusively nonviolent resistance. Pro-Erdogan thugs beat and
even lynched soldiers suspected of supporting the coup and there are
increasing reports of vendettas carried out by pro-AKP mobs.
It's also unfortunate that this impressive show of civil resistance in the
face of an illegitimate military coup was done to defend a reactionary
government. But the fact that a leader targeted by a coup would recognize
that civil resistance would be the key to his government's survival is yet
another indication of the growing awareness that power does not just come
from the barrel of a gun.
There is no evidence to suggest that the United States supported the coup
attempt, despite accusations by some Turkish officials. Charges that the
moderate U.S.-based Turkish Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen was behind the
coup are murky at best. After initially simply calling for both sides to
show restraint, the Obama administration joined the rest of the
international community in denouncing the coup.
The U.S. has strongly supported the Turkish military on the four previous
occasions when it has seized power. This included the martial law period
during the 1980s during which thousands of civilians were killed and tens of
thousands of nonviolent dissidents were jailed (at the same time the Reagan
administration, ironically, was leading international efforts to sanction
Poland for a far less-violent martial law.)
In 2003, the Turkish parliament refused to let the country be used as a
launching pad for the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul
Wolfowitz said he was "disappointed" that the Turkish military "did not play
the strong leadership role on that issue that we would have expected."
At least the Obama administration recognized that having the United States
support a military coup against a democratically elected and still fairly
popular government-particularly given the history of U.S. support for coups
and regime change in the region-would likely sow instability rather than
order.
It would be even better if the United States were to withhold military
assistance and other support unless the Erdogan government ceases its
repression against nonviolent and democratic opponents.
C 2016 The Progressive
Stephen Zunes
Stephen Zunes is a Professor of Politics and International Studies at the
University of
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The Good News and the Bad News About Turkey's Attempted Coup
Published on
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
by
The Progressive
The Good News and the Bad News About Turkey's Attempted Coup
by
Stephen Zunes
. 2 Comments
.
. Anti-coup demonstrators in Turkey last over the weekend. (Photo by
Lubunya)
. The survival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his
ruling Justice and Welfare Party of an attempted coup last week is a mixed
blessing.
. Despite the ultra-conservative policies and creeping
authoritarianism of the Erdogan regime, Turks from across the political
spectrum opposed the coup, which was attempted by a faction of the Turkish
military.
. As the putschists were claiming they had seized state power,
Erdogan-instead of calling for armed resistance-used FaceTime to appeal to
the nation: "I urge the Turkish people to convene at public squares and
airports. There is no power higher than the power of the people."
. In response, hundreds of thousands of supporters took to the streets
and faced down the putschists, despite scores of unarmed protesters being
killed by tanks, attack helicopters, and snipers.
The good news is that the coup's failure may be a sign that, for the first
time in history, Turkey's elected government has successfully imposed
civilian rule over the military. Having experienced military rule a number
of times in recent history, the Turkish public recognized a military regime
would probably be even worse. They also saw what happened in Egypt, where
liberal democrats initially cheered the military coup against Morsi and the
Muslim Brotherhood only to find themselves under a brutal military
dictatorship.
Turks' resistance to the coup demonstrates that the Turkish military no
longer has the overbearing role it had for so many decades, effectively
exercising veto power from behind the scenes. On four previous occasions,
they easily seized power from democratically elected governments.
The bad news is that the apparent success in resisting the military may not
be used for democratic ends.
Indeed, Erdogan and his AKP is already using the coup attempt as an excuse
to crack down even harder on dissent. In just a matter of hours, Turkish
president Erdogan ordered the jailing of more than 6,000 people, including
2,745 judges and prosecutors, for allegedly supporting the coup attempt.
Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry has fired close to 9,000 people across
country, including thirty governors.
Observers seriously doubt that a government not known for its efficiency
could have carried out any credible investigations with such speed. There is
little doubt Erdogan is using this as an excuse to consolidate his rule and
eliminate checks on his power.
Turkey's coup was largely defeated by massive nonviolent resistance, adding
to a list of countries where military putschists have been overwhelmed by
people power: Germany (1923), France (1962), Bolivia (1979), Argentina
(1987), Russia (1991), Haiti (1992), Thailand (1992), Venezuela (2002) and
Burkina Faso (2015). Just because the military may take over government
buildings and proclaim itself in charge doesn't mean people will recognize
its authority or agree to cooperate.
But it was not exclusively nonviolent resistance. Pro-Erdogan thugs beat and
even lynched soldiers suspected of supporting the coup and there are
increasing reports of vendettas carried out by pro-AKP mobs.
It's also unfortunate that this impressive show of civil resistance in the
face of an illegitimate military coup was done to defend a reactionary
government. But the fact that a leader targeted by a coup would recognize
that civil resistance would be the key to his government's survival is yet
another indication of the growing awareness that power does not just come
from the barrel of a gun.
There is no evidence to suggest that the United States supported the coup
attempt, despite accusations by some Turkish officials. Charges that the
moderate U.S.-based Turkish Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen was behind the
coup are murky at best. After initially simply calling for both sides to
show restraint, the Obama administration joined the rest of the
international community in denouncing the coup.
The U.S. has strongly supported the Turkish military on the four previous
occasions when it has seized power. This included the martial law period
during the 1980s during which thousands of civilians were killed and tens of
thousands of nonviolent dissidents were jailed (at the same time the Reagan
administration, ironically, was leading international efforts to sanction
Poland for a far less-violent martial law.)
In 2003, the Turkish parliament refused to let the country be used as a
launching pad for the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul
Wolfowitz said he was "disappointed" that the Turkish military "did not play
the strong leadership role on that issue that we would have expected."
At least the Obama administration recognized that having the United States
support a military coup against a democratically elected and still fairly
popular government-particularly given the history of U.S. support for coups
and regime change in the region-would likely sow instability rather than
order.
It would be even better if the United States were to withhold military
assistance and other support unless the Erdogan government ceases its
repression against nonviolent and democratic opponents.
C 2016 The Progressive
/author/stephen-zunes
/author/stephen-zunes/author/stephen-zunes
Stephen Zunes is a Professor of Politics and International Studies at the
University of San Francisco.
