The conflict between Turkey and Syria is heating up. On Sunday, June 30, the Turkish army sent  six F-16 planes to do emergency takeoffs on their border with Syria in response to the three jets that the Syrian army sent over on Saturday. Turkey recognizes that last Saturday’s action was not a violation of Turkish air space, but the nearness of these planes was enough for them to order a response.

The reality is that Turkey has become more aggressive towards Syria since a Turkish F-4 was brought down by the Syrian troops on  June 22. Turkish response came fast. Their armed forces deployed launchers and anti areal batteries missiles against Syria. Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said that they will “regard… as a threat” any type of military element that gets close to the frontier.

Officially, Turkey does not want confrontation with Syria, but the reality is that they are putting pressure on others, such as the United States, to stop the Syrian conflict. Turkey has gone from friendship to criticism. Now they support the Syrian National Council and the Free Syrian Army. They also asked for the creation of intermediate zones and humanitarian corridors in the border area.

Meanwhile, NATO has insisted that it is necessary to find a political solution, but has approved the steps that Turkey is following in order to defend their land and population.

In the other side, Rusia says that the felled Turkish airship on June 22 was flying in Syrian air space. Moscow assures the public that they have evidence that can prove it. Turkey has not taken long to defend themselves and has made a response that denies the information that accuses Turkey of flying in Syria’s air space.

The Syrian Minister of Information has stated that the armed forces shot down the plane by mistake because they thought that it was an Israeli craft. As the Minister explained, most of the Turkish and Israelis aircrafts are made by the United States. This is what confused the Syrian forces, and made them think that it was an Israeli plane.

In the meantime, the Syrian Civil War, which according to United Nations has caused more than 10,000 victims, keeps on going. A prominent Syrian Al Assad opposition, Fawaaz al Tello, has made a call to the United States asking for help. He is demanding weapons for the rebels, for fighting the Al Assad regime. The Free Syrian Army has expressed that they need weapons such as rocket launchers in order to destroy the tanks and army helicopters from the Syrian Army.

The United States does not seem to be convinced to give weapons to the Syrians because most of the rebels are Islamist, so there is a level of suspicion surrounding it. What it seems clear is that all of the steps need to be given careful consideration because the conflict could explode at any moment.

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After a 7.2 magnitude earthquake rocked Turkey on Sunday, people are scrambling to rescue those who may still be buried underneath the rubble of destroyed buildings. The southeastern region of Turkey was badly hit by the earthquake, where the death toll has soared to over 400.

Over 1,300 people have been injured because of this natural disaster. As time speeds forward, the amount feared dead is expected to rise. Thousands of buildings have collapsed due to the destructive power of the earthquake, burying people within layers of concrete and debris. The town of Van is one of the hardest hit areas in Turkey, along with Ercis.

The southeastern region of Turkey is heavily mountainous and is considered to be one of the poorest areas of the country. Turkey is located on a geological fault line that makes it highly susceptible to destructive earthquakes. 90 countries from around the world have stretched out their funds towards Turkey in hopes of rescuing potential survivors and providing aid.

Turkey’s government has held by its strong stance of providing for its own country and has only accepted the help from neighboring countries Azerbaijan and Iran. Turkey is continuously being pressured to agree to international aid as the devastation from the earthquake continues to take a toll on its citizens.

The government is receiving much criticism for not accepting international aid when hundreds of people are still missing. Many of the hard to reach areas are remote villages. Rescue efforts have not been able to travel to these areas because roads are impassable.

Typical villages in this area have houses made out of clay and mud, which are materials that are not made to withstand the powers of a 7.2 magnitude earthquake. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Prime Minister, believes that the majority of the buildings in these remote villages are completely destroyed.

Turkey’s Health Ministry has set up a crisis center in Ankara, while the hardest hit areas of Turkey have had help from international relief organizations. 2,300 emergency personnel have arrived to the hardest hit areas of the region by Monday and continue searching for people in collapsed buildings.

Upcoming weather forecasts will undeniably play a role in the rescue efforts as overnight freezing temperatures are predicted, as well as snow. Hundreds of aftershocks have played a detrimental role in rescuing people, often making it hard to make successful rescues. Positive rescue efforts have been seen throughout the hard hit areas.

On Tuesday, an infant girl at just two weeks old was rescued with her mother and grandmother within their destroyed home. Their family was taken to a hospital in Ercis, near the town of Van, where much of the earthquake’s impact was felt. There are many organizations that are helping with the earthquake crisis and a numerous amount of ways people can donate to this unfortunate disaster.

The Turkish Red Crescent has set up tents for those who have become homeless after the earthquake, along with providing food and water for thousands. Donations are being accepted by the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund. Donations can be made on the website of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Society.

From the United States, people can donate $10 by calling (941) 907-6036 or text “SHELTER” to 20222.

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Turkey has proposed its new vision for a new system in the Middle East based on an alliance with Egypt, at a time when the Arab Spring continues to stir revolutions and popular uprisings against various rulers of the region.

According to The Washington Post, this proposition was presented by Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davut Oglu. Oglu’s proposal came after weeks of deteriorating and strained relations with both Syria and Israel, and following Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s latest visit to various Arab countries including Egypt.

Oglu accompanied Ardugan alongside 280 Turkish business men to Egypt and he stated that over $1 Billion were signed in contracts in one day. Turkey holds Israel responsible for the collapse of the relations between both states because of its refusal to apologize to the Turkish government and people, as well as compensating for the victims of the Gaza flotilla incident.

Oglu also accused Syrian President Bashar Al Assad of being dishonest after Turkish officials gave the latter a final chance to save his regime by ceasing the unjust and violent suppression of Syrian protestors demanding change, which has not stopped.

Oglu is seen as the architect of successful Turkish foreign policies in the Middle East in which Turkey has emerged as both a credible and imperative player with the Islamic world in the turbulent region.

This alliance is proposed on the basis that both countries possess two of the most powerful armies in the region, are of the most populated, and able to exert a considerable amount of influence; in a time where Oglu explained that the US’ control of the Middle East is decreasing steadily.

“This will not be an axis against any other country – not Israel, not Iran, not any other country, but this will be an axis of democracy, real democracy, this will be an axis of democracy of the two biggest nations in our region, from the north to the south, from the Black Sea down to the Nile Valley in Sudan,” he added.

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Turkish Chief of Staff and three Force Commanders wanted their retirements. This signals a form of quitting and this is first for Republic of Turkish history. For a time there is some problem between Military and Government but no one was waiting this development.

On July 29, Chief of Staff Işık Koşaner; Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and President of Turkey Abdullah Gül had a meeting together. That meeting took about one hour and about six hours later Chief of Staff Işık Koşaner; The Commander of Land Forces, Erdal Ceylanoğlu, The Commander of Air Forces, Hasan Aksay; The Commander of Naval Forces Eşref Uğur Yiğit wanted their retirements.

Işık Koşaner worked one year in this position and he will stay there for two more years. He is known for his sensitivity of secularism and he is also uncomfortable about jailed generals and government’s opinions about their promotions.

After that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan talked with Deputy Prime Minister, Beşir Atalay and then General Commander of Gendarmerie, Necdet özel who is only one general now in the military came to Prime Minister’s Center Building and talked with Prime Minister about one hour. Lastly, Necdet Özel and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan went to President of Turkey Abdullah Gül. In an hour they declared that Necdet Özel is new The New Commander of Land Forces and represent Chief of Staff.

Supreme Military Council (YAŞ) started on August 1 and will finish on August 4. After all these developments Supreme Military Council can be difficult from others.

homeros / Shutterstock.com

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Reporters Without Borders recently released a detailed report regarding the freedom of speech in Turkey, with the title of “A Book is Not a Bomb!” The prime minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan has a “great” contribution for this title, since he likened a book with a bomb at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), trying to rebuff the questions of freedom of press in Turkey:

“It is a crime to use a bomb, but it is also a crime to use materials from which a bomb is made. If informed that all materials needed to construct a bomb have been placed in a certain location, wouldn’t the security forces collect these materials?”

This outrageous claim refers to the seizure of journalist Ahmet Sik’s unpublished book “The Army of Imam” on March 24, which unveils the “deep state” in Turkey.

In Turkey, more than 57 journalists are being held in prison at the moment, mainly referring to the Ergenekon trial which claimed to be a terrorist movement organising a coup d’etat against the ruling party AKP. The crediblity of the Ergenekon case is very much under suspicion, because of the convictions of reliable journalists and intellectuals of the country. There are several indictments of thousands of pages since October 2008 and the wave of arrests are continuing without a trial, without reaching a definite verdict.

Ergenekon trial is mainly based on the conflict between islamist-rooted ruling party AKP, and seculars who depend on the founder of the Turkish Republic, Kemal Atatürk.

Reporters Without Borders’ Turkey report, deals with some top issues regarding freedom of press in Turkey, namely the Ergenekon Case, the imprisonment of two influential investigative journalists, Ahmet Sik and Nedim Sener, the impact of Fethullah Gulen cult on Turkey’s politics, the repressive laws against freedom of speech, and the issue of independency of media.

One of the conspicuous remarks on the report, is that many journalists feel under pressure, and it has became a crime to have an opposing attitude against the government, since journalists are being accused of being a part of a terrorist organisation without any kind of proof. The seizure of an unpublished book is one of the obvious proofs how dangerous and terrifying the situation is in Turkey.

Despite of the claim of the ruling party, that they are the pioneers of Turkish democracy, many people feel under pressure regarding freedom of speech and media. The arbitrary arrests of the journalists, and the defence of the authorities by likening a book with a bomb, unfortunately causes a big disgrace for the country’s democracy challenge.

Reporters Without Borders’ Turkey report reveals the unstable and unreliable environment in the country, especially when it comes to freedom of speech. The ridiculous enforcements, for example the internet censorship and the overwhelming pressure on journalists who are only doing their jobs, are some of the stains on country’s modern and democratic face.

Despite the protests all over the country, Turkey still seems to hold on to the current situation. Especially after the results of 2011 elections, it seems that the importance of the freedom of speech and media has not been realised yet. Still the struggle has to be persisted with the motto “A book is not a bomb!”.

Please find the special report of Reporters Without Borders here: http://en.rsf.org/turkey-fact-finding-mission-a-book-is-not-16-06-2011,40471.html

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Turkey is about to hold its parliamentary elections on June 12 but the campaign period has been a grotesque nightmare for the far-rights in the country. The main issue has been a group called Farklı Ülkücülük (English: ‘Different Idealism’) which started posting explicit sex videos online last month, showing senior members of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) engaging in sexual acts with women – in one case a prostitute and in another example, a 16-year-old girl.

The scandal has forced ten members of the party, including front runners for the election, to resign. According to voanews.com, MHP leader Devlet Bahceli is accusing the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of financially supporting the group behind the website but Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of the AKP has angrily denied the charges.

“We did what we could so far on this issue,” PM Erdogan told the press. “Bahceli is trying to blame the government for his internal problem.”

The explosive sex scandal is the latest in a ‘dirty tricks’ campaign of unprecedented proportions. The Turkish political scene seems to have hit a new low as the media has been able to expose video surveillance and phone tapping of politicians, government officials and journalists. According to Danish daily Politiken, the previous leader of MHP resigned last year following a similar smear campaign.

The identity of the people behind the recent sex tapes is still undetermined. Across one of the videos, the group wrote a statement that urged the resignation of the entire opposition which some are taking as a sign that the group stands for highly loyal ultra-nationalists. Whether or not this is the case, the extremely bad publicity of the opposition is only beneficiary for the ruling party. Commentators have expressed their concern that if the election is determined on the scandalous campaign, the PM could end up with an absolute majority in parliament – meaning the AKP can legislate without gaining the support of other parties.

As a politician, it would be difficult for Erdogan not to take advantage of the embarrassing situation his opponents are in. More so, since the religious segments in the Turkish society is where the big vote is won. In an interview, the Turkish PM said about the nature of the case: “Those women were not their wives so why should it be a matter of their private lives?” He also referred to the MHP as a brothel in the same interview. Similarly, he stated that it goes against the Muslim Turkish society to call ‘questions of immoral actions’ a private matter.

The MHP has accused the Turkish media of bias but for the Erdogan-supporting parts of the press, a sex scandal of these proportions is hard to ignore. What defines the pro-AKP press is their unwillingness to differentiate between the sheep and the herd.

“Many are now asking how a party like the MHP, who can’t seem to get conservatism and nationalism straight, has become a party that doesn’t hesitate to violate these values,” wrote Fatma Disli Zabak, a Turkish commentator.

With under a week until the polls open, it is possible that more disclosures and resignations will come but so far, the damage seems done. The AKP is looking shinier than ever while the MHP is facing a serious challenge if they expect to regain the people’s trust.

Image provided by World Economic Forum

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Turkey’s upcoming general election will be held on 12th of June 2011. AKP (Development and Justice Party) established two governments since 2002, and is the ruling party since then.

Despite the claims of the ruling party, the country is facing hard times. Poverty, unemployment, Kurt issue, abridgment of freedom of speech, decadence and indecency in politics, led Turkey into a deep crisis, but the ruling party is pressuring the citizens with the claim of stability.

The main principles of Turkish constitiution, that Turkey is a secular and democratic republic, is at stake since many people are afraid of the secularism of Turkey is in danger. In the spring of 2007, millions who shared the concern that Turkey’s politics are getting conservative, rallied to defend Turkey’s secular democrasy. Neglecting the concerns and fears of many people, State minister and Deputy minister Bulent Arinc, recently declared that, the main thing that keeps Turkish people together is not secularism but the religion Islam. This comment made people even more worried, since it compromises the basis of Turkish foundation which depends on secularism as a guarentee of the protection of different point of views and beliefs.

AKP’s enforcements such as, the new polemical regulation of internet filtering, the alcohol ban in events, festivals and organisations where young people under 24 attend with the claim that the aim of protecting young people from alcoholism, are some proofs that disclose the ruling party’s oppressive mentality. Turkey’s top administrative court recently cancelled the alcohol ban, since the law sets for drinking age as 18 and not 24.

About the internet restrictions, when the Turkish Industry and Business Association (TUSIAD), declared their concerns, the Deputy minister Bulent Arinc accused TUSIAD of being an unreliable organisation, and by adressing the chairman of TUSIAD, Umit Boyner, said that, “they can liberate porn sites and sites which contain violence, when they have the charge”. Umit Boyner in her written press release, declared that she found Deputy Minister’s attitude as terrifying. It seems that the voice of Turkish people who stands for their individual rights such as freedom of speech, is taken by government as being a fan of porn and violence.

Freedom of press in Turkey is not pleasant at all. Many journalists are in jail in Turkey mainly because of the “anti-terror” law. International Press Institute, in its press release on 4th April, 2011, mentioned  the report of OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) which indicates that at least 57 journalist are being held in prison. On 13th April 2011, at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), reffering to the reporter Ahmet Sik’s being held at prison because of his “unpublished book”, Prime Minister Erdogan responded PACE members’ questions about freedom of speech in Turkey, in outrage, claiming that “It is a crime to use a bomb, but it is also a crime to use materials from which a bomb is made. If informed that all materials needed to construct a bomb have been placed in a certain location, wouldn’t the security forces collect these materials?”. The Prime Minister of  Turkey in 21st century, basically compared a book with a bomb.

When it comes to political decency, Turkey represents a failure. Before 2011 elections, opposing parties had to deal with sex tape scandals. On 2010 Deniz Baykal, the former leader of the opposing party CHP (The Republican People’s Party), resigned because of a tape that he claimed to be a conspiracy. And now the other opposing party MHP (Nationalist Action Party) is facing the same issues and the scandal caused 10 resignations inside the party during May. This scandal also resulted by the ban of more websites such as Rapidshare.

One of the main problems that Turkey comes face to face with every time, is the regulation of general election in Turkey, since every party has to take the 10% of the votes in order to enter the parliament. That means, according to the results of last election, approximately 11% of the electors could not be represented in the parliament. It is clear that Turkey needs a brand new constitution which has to bring new regulations, such as  the general election law, the parliamentary immunity,  the anti-terror law, and many others.

Turkey’s one of the biggest issue, Kurt issue has to be solved, approaching to the case with neither Turkish nor Kurdish nationalism. A deeper action must be taken by improving the individual rights and conditions, and by taking into account people’s prosperity without dividing them as Turks and Kurts.

There’s an urge to take a further step for Turkey’s democracy challenge. The tendency of ruling party’s using religion as a tool, is transforming the country’s modern and democratic face into a conservative and oprresive mentality. The main issues of Turkey should be discussed despite the manipulations of politicians.  As a country in between, Turkey has to recognise its innermost problems and stand for most basic rights, without having the fear of unstability as the ruling party claims. People in Turkey do not have to live in such nonsense, or compromise the basic rights, just to sustain stability. Who knows, “chaos” could lead us to a better life.

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In an article for the Danish newspaper Jyllands-posten, freelance journalist Pola Rojan took a look at the state of press freedom in Turkey, the country at EU’s border which has tried to gain full membership of the Union since 1987. What he found was a country who had started to take the rights of journalists increasingly less serious in what seems to be a deliberate attempt from the government to stifle freedom of speech.

Mid-February, the newly appointed American ambassador to Turkey, Francis Ricciardone, expressed concern over the increased number of cases against journalists and his statement received immediate support from the Foreign Ministry in Washington. At the same time, several international investigations have pointed out the exact same development in the Turkish state. At the start of February, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) concluded in their yearly report that the situation for journalists in Turkey was a great cause of concern. The organization refers to the around 4.000 journalists who are currently on trail at the Turkish court, hundreds of them already serving prison sentences.

The Prime Minister of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, responded to Mr Ricciardone’s statement with anger, saying that the subject was none of the American’s business and called him an ‘amateur ambassador’. The Minister of the Interior, Beshir Atalay followed up by remarking that press freedom was probably better off in Turkey than in the US. This attitude is a sharp contrast to the current situation for many journalists on the ground – a situation which international observes believe can be attributed to the conservative Justice and Development party (AK Party) and their eight year period as the ruling party. Reporters Without Borders release a yearly report on the global conditions of freedom of press and in this period, Turkey took a dive in the organizations country index. From having been placed at number 99 for a stable period until 2002, Turkey had fallen to number 138 out of 178 countries in 2010. The EU commission assigned to oversee the Turkish reform process have been highly critical of this development, stating that the country’s legislation have failed to guarantee the freedom of press in accordance with the European Convention on Human Rights.

According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), the problem is mainly the anti-terror law from which many journalist are prosecuted for propaganda activities. The legislation judges the word as harsh as the sword – meaning that producing material considered to represent a terrorist organization is just as criminal as picking up a weapon and fighting for its cause. Spokeswoman for HRW in Turkey calls the law a political instrument and cites its unspecified language as a major reason for the law’s misuse.

Irfan Aktan, a 30-year-old journalist, is currently serving a 15 months prison sentence, convicted of terrorist propaganda after interviewing two armed militants from the Kurdish resistance movement PKK. He has appealed the conviction but has joined the cabinet of ‘unwanted’ journalist which include more controversial cases such as Verdat Kursun, chief editor of Azadiya Welat who was sentenced to 166 years in prison for “spreading propaganda for an illegal organization” – meaning the PKK. To Jyllands-posten, Mr Aktan explains “I have passed on other people’s opinion to a newspaper audience. It is the most fundamental journalistic discipline for which I am now being punished.”

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