Editorial: Turkish trial Monday, 09 January 2012 05:12

The civilian-military relationship in Turkey has undergone a sea change over the last decade. And the architect of this change is Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

A Turkish court has ordered the former chief of the powerful armed forces to be remanded in custody pending trial on charges of attempting a coup against the government. General Ilker Basbug, who retired in 2010, is the highest-ranking officer to be caught up in the so-called Ergenekon case. The court order has stunned Turks and can be seen as an audacious move against the military, which can worsen its ties with the government.

Military chiefs were once regarded as the most powerful men in Turkey after a series of coups in the late 20th century. After assuming power in 2002 Erdogan’s government tried systematically to dismantle the supremacy of the army which culminated in the latest court order. The case against Basbug centers on websites spreading propaganda against Erdogan’s government that the military was accused of running until 2008.

Erdogan’s reforms were hailed because they restored the supremacy of the elected government over the military. It was in a sense a correction, because in a democracy, the government should be free to rule without the fear of being toppled by the military. In Turkey, the military once enjoyed extraordinary powers as they considered themselves as the guardians of Mustafa Kemal`s secular legacy and carried out four military coups in addition to many manipulations. But since the rise of the Justice and Development Party headed by Erdogan, there has been a definite ascendancy of civilian power and gradual eclipse of the military power, which is continuing.

However, the government of prime minister Erdogan needs to proceed cautiously against the former army chief. While there is nothing wrong with the law taking its due course, it should not be seen as settling scores or punishing anyone without justification.

Turkey is already under focus for the arrest of some journalists, including two prominent investigative scribes Nedim Sener and Ahmet Sik. The country is currently said to be holding around 100 members of the news media in jail. Critics have said this blighs the country’s image as a model of democrcay for the Muslim world where popular uprisings are throwing out dictators.

The responsibility also lies with the country’s judiciary which must act independently and deliver justice. In a democratic system, people have faith in the courts and whenever the ruling governments are seen to act unjustly, they can intervene on behalf of the victims.

The court trials will be watched with keen interest in the coming days and will decide the future course of Turkish politics.