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The Mass Purges a Civil Society Perspective

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The Mass Purges a Civil Society Perspective THE FAILED MILITARY COUP IN TURKEY & THE MASS PURGES A CIVIL SOCIETY PERSPECTIVE 1 Table of Contents Alliance for Shared Values (AfSV) is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization Preface .. ................................................................................................................. 3 based in New York. Together with our local affiliates and partners we aim to help eliminate false stereotypes, prejudices, fear and hatred, and Executive Summary .............................................................................................. 4 serve peace and social harmony. Our local affiliates include: The Coup Attempt and Post Coup Purges .......................................................... 8 Peace Islands Institute (New York, NY) Timeline of the Coup Attempt................................................................................... 10 Rumi Forum (Washington, D.C.) Niagara Foundation (Chicago, IL) Post-Coup Purges.....................................................................................................14 Dialogue Institute of Southwest (Houston, TX) Pacifica Institute (Los Angeles, CA) Ten Categories of Human Rights Violations............................................................... 17 Atlantic Institute (Atlanta, GA) Victims and the World Reaction................................................................................. 18 The Official Story, Questions and a More Plausible Alternative........................... 24 Founders and supporters of AfSV include participants of the Hizmet Movement, a civil society movement that aims to bring citizens together A Disinformation Strategy that Ignores the Broad Base of the Coup..........................26 around high human values such as empathy, mutual respect, commit- ment to the dignity of every human life and service to community. Questions and Contradictions Left Unanswered by the Official Story......................... 31 The Logical Fallacy of Trying to Justify Mass Purges by Telling Coup Anecdotes..... 34 Quoted views in this document reflect the opinions of their respective A More Plausible Story ......................................................................................... 36 authors, not the official position of the Alliance. Erdogan’s Pattern of Power Grab......................................................................... 37 Alliance for Shared Values is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization Erdogan’s Media Control Prior to Gezi Park.............................................................. 38 based in New York. 2013 Gezi Park Protests and Erdogan’s Control of Media......................................... 38 www.afsv.org 2013 Corruption Probe and Erdogan’s Control of the Judiciary..................................40 © Copyright, 2016 by Alliance for Shared Values. All rights reserved. July 15 Coup and Erdogan’s Control of the Military.................................................... 42 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 44 Not for Sale References...............................................................................................................45 2 3 Executive Summary The failed July 15th coup attempt was a historic completely silence all opposition and moment in Turkish history. Both Turkish society completely re-engineer the military structure, Photo: Getty Images and the world celebrated the fact that an anti- including the education of cadets. This democratic intervention in the government was allowed him to bring the military under his prevented. The military officers suspected of tutelage. On the night of the coup attempt, planning and carrying out actions against the he said, “This uprising is a gift from God to US Director of National elected government should be investigated us because this will be a reason to cleanse 2 Intelligence James Clapper and brought to justice. The Turkish government our army.” has every right to pursue these individuals, stated US intelligence using all the methods the law allows. On the night of July 15, several hours before details of the coup attempt emerged, President showed no link between The actions of President Erdogan’s Erdogan, speaking on a smartphone to CNN- Gulen and the coup Turk declared Fethullah Gulen, a 77-year old government in the immediate aftermath of reclusive preacher living in Pennsylvania, to attempt. the coup, however, constitute a mass purge be its mastermind. The official story told by rather than a proper investigation. In addition Erdogan government about the failed coup to the officers who were accused of taking attempt is that a group of military officers who part in the coup, thousands of soldiers who sympathized with Gulen learned that they did not take part in the coup, as well as tens Photo: Getty Images would be eliminated in the upcoming August of thousands of civilians including journalists, meeting of the High Council of the Military teachers and judges were detained and and they staged a coup to save themselves arrested within days of the attempt. and gain control of the government. While this story sounds appealing, it is not based on an Amnesty International reported1 “credible investigation or a court verdict. The official evidence” of serious abuses of detainees story leaves many questions unanswered and including beatings, torture and rape. the government has so far failed to produce President Erdogan used the failed coup any evidence to link Gulen with the attempt. as a golden opportunity to accelerate the persecution of the Hizmet movement and U.S. Director of National Intelligence James the government’s confiscation of private Clapper stated that U.S. intelligence services properties owned by Hizmet sympathizers. did not see evidence of Gulen’s involvement in He also used the coup as an excuse to the coup attempt.3 Composite: Mahir Zeynelov /Twitter 4 5 the coup is not affiliation with the Hizmet movement but being independent voices critical of the Erdogan regime. Some of the arrested journalists are known to be liberal, leftist, pro-Kurdish or nationalist. Some of the arrested military officers are known as hardline Kemalists. The government announced on September 8, 2016 suspension of 11,500 Kurdish teachers for alleged links to a terrorist Gulen’s books are confiscated as evidence in Turkeypurge.com keeps track of the victims of organization. An atmosphere of fear is post coup purges. the post coup purges perpetrated to silence all democratic dissent. Because of human rights abuses and because of the fearful atmosphere that was created after the coup, it may not be Many other independent experts have and suppress information emerging from possible to learn the facts about the coup- argued that it is objectively very unlikely that officer testimonies that contradict the official at least for a long while. But regardless of th Gulen-sympathizing officers were the driving story. This disinformation strategy leaves the what happened on the night of July 15 , force of such an attempt. alleged Hizmet sympathizers in the military the mass purges in its immediate aftermath as the only perpetrators. The combination have targeted mostly civilians and left Certain independent observers are telling of media domination by Erdogan and the tens of thousands of families suffering. a more plausible tale. According to this fearful atmosphere this media has created President Erdogan is using the coup attempt Yamanlar High School in Izmir is one of the 1,284 schools that story, the attempt had a much broader to consolidate all power in his hands and leaves the society with only the government were founded by the Hizmet participants and confiscated by the base, including hardline Kemalists and narrative. It helps vilify the Hizmet movement position himself, according to New York government after the coup. A violent mob destroyed the school neo-nationalists. President Erdogan was as a whole. And it helps justify the Times, as the new mythical savior of the sign after an executive was assigned by the government. expecting such an attempt and his allies government’s logical fallacy: that unproven Turkish nation, a 21st century Ataturk.4 moved to cripple it and turn it into an accusations against the Hizmet movement The world’s reaction to the failed coup attempt opportunity for Erdogan to come out as a justify the mass purges. left President Erdogan disappointed. While hero. The active role of Gen. Mehmet Disli, showing solidarity with the Turkish government brother of AKP vice chairman Saban Disli The targeting of tens of thousands of in its effort to identify and prosecute the on the night of the coup, along with other non-military personnel including judges, coup-plotters, world leaders and human indicators, underlie this view. journalists and teachers, without due rights monitoring organizations criticized the process or a proper investigation constitutes government’s targeting of civilians via a mass In order to justify their purges and power a classic example of guilt by association. purge. While these criticisms are valuable, grab, the Turkish government is using as they help protect basic human rights and a strategy of emotional appeals and Individuals and organizations sympathetic freedoms in Turkey, they are insufficient to stop disinformation, all of it based around a logical to the Hizmet movement are not the fallacy. To support their actions, the Turkish only victims of the post-coup purges. Erdogan’s government from targeting civil
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