The Republic of Turkey, proclaimed on 29 October 1923, celebrated its centennial just a month ago. Simultaneously, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government heralded that the coming centennial would be “Türkiye Yüzyılı – Turkish Century”.
The “Turkish Century” was framed as follows: “We want to turn this important anniversary into the beginning of a brand-new vision that will leave its mark on our next century. It is called the Century of Türkiye. The Century of Türkiye is a comprehensive roadmap that will raise our country above the level of contemporary civilizations. The Century of Türkiye is the resolution to make our nation’s century-old dreams come true and march towards even greater goals.”
Erdoğan, referring to his 22 years in power, also stated that, “…we have for 22 years carried our country from one success to another, from one victory to another. By overcoming the century-old neglects and shortcomings, we have, through investments, taken the steps that will elevate our country above the level of contemporary civilization. We have implemented historic reforms in every area, from democracy to economy, security to justice, education to healthcare, and agriculture to foreign policy… And now, we are working hard to render the second century of the Republic our nation’s century in the world with the goal of the ‘Century of Türkiye.’ With our growing economy, strengthening democracy, increasing reputation, widening area of influence and with our principled and visionary foreign policy, we continue to be the ‘protector of the unprotected’ in the world as well as in our country.”
Thus, Erdoğan presented the near-past and future as “very successful”. In this speech presenting the concept of “Turkish Century”, and many other hallmark speeches, he always emphasizes the wisdom of democracy, rule of law, rights and freedoms, separation of power, economic prosperity and so on. On rare occasions he also talks about some problems and shortcomings; but all these negative developments are due to evil efforts of external enemies and their internal allies. According to Erdoğan and his circles, many countries but especially Europeans envy Turkey. But the government is strong enough and determined to overcome all these challenges and carry Turkey to further “successes”.
Well; in the first few years of the AK Party governments, Turkey enjoyed several reforms which increased the level of democracy, strengthened rights and freedoms, promoted prosperity. During these years, Turkey improved its relations with the European Union, took steps towards full membership. In this chapter of the “fairy tale”, Erdoğan appeared as a leader who would prioritize the rule of law, end the tutelage of the army over political and social life, take the country to universal standards of law, end the discrimination of certain identities, promote equality within society, secure economic prosperity, thus crowning the Republic with consolidated democracy.
Unfortunately, this chapter of the “fairy tale” didn’t last long. Erdoğan, who has been ruling the country since 2002, did not keep his pro-democracy reformist agenda for long. After some exciting years of democratic reforms, first he slowed down progress, followed by stagnation and finally backsliding. Democratic gains eroded, economic growth stalled, and EU accession froze.
There were two developments which put the last nails into the coffin of democratic reform mindset and process: the Gezi protests which started on 28 May 2013 and the military coup attempt in July 2016.
Gezi protests
The Gezi Park protests, which unfolded during the summer of 2013, marked a pivotal moment in the nation’s recent history. On 28 May 2013, a group of environmentalists/urban rights activists started a peaceful sit-in protest against the government’s plan to build a replica of a historical military barracks that would also include a shopping mall in Taksim’s Gezi Park. Activists claimed that this project would demolish the nature of the park, one of the few green areas in the heart of Istanbul. However, the heavy-handed response from the authorities, including the use of tear gas and disproportionate force, transformed the peaceful gathering into a nationwide movement. The Gezi Park protests quickly evolved into a widespread mass movement, reflecting the citizens’ anger at the government’s policies leading to erosion of democratic values, limiting rights and freedoms as well as implementations targeting pluralism, secular lifestyle, identity expressions in almost all cities in Turkey. Protesters, representing diverse segments of society, expressed concerns about freedom of expression, media censorship, and what they viewed as increasing authoritarianism. It is estimated that more than 5.000 demonstrations took place across the country and over 3.5 million people participated in over three weeks. The government, led by then-Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan quickly adopted a heavy-handed approach, labeling protesters as “foreign agents”, “looters”, “marauders” etc. Erdoğan claimed that the real intent of the protesters was to topple him by the order of foreign countries. Police forces repeatedly used excessive force to prevent and disperse peaceful demonstrations. According to reports, 11 people were killed and more than 8,000 were injured in the state response, while more than 3,000 were arrested.
The Gezi Protests left a traumatic mark on Erdoğan. Instead of trying to hear the voices raised on the streets and understand the dynamics and roots of their concerns, he chose not to initiate a dialogue with the protesters but rather to insult, accuse and attack them and employ severe measures. Erdoğan also took the matter in a very personal way and considered the protests as a betrayal to a leader who did all these great things for his nation. For him, Gezi was staged by foreign powers who were envious of Turkey’s growth and of him and these powers wanted to get rid of him.
Erdoğan never forgot the Gezi protests. Still, on every occasion, he refers to Gezi and continues accusing and insulting protesters.
15 July coup attempt
While still struggling with the trauma caused by Gezi protests, another tragic event took place on 15 July 2016. On this date, a faction within the Turkish military attempted to seize control of key institutions, including government buildings and media outlets. Violent clashes occurred between coup plotters and those opposing the coup. There were reports of gunfire, explosions, and confrontations in various parts of the country, particularly in Ankara and Istanbul. Next day, pro-government forces were able to control the situation and the plotters were defeated. Following the failure of the coup, the Turkish government, led by President Erdoğan, initiated a widespread crackdown on perceived supporters of the coup. This led to mass arrests, dismissals from public positions, and declaration of state of emergency.
In the eyes of many commentators, the Gezi protests and the 15 July coup attempt cleared the last drops of democratic tendencies in Erdoğan’s mind and consolidated his ambition towards concentration of power in his hands. Some contend that the failed coup provided Erdoğan with a golden opportunity to “clean the area” and eliminate all opponents. In his own words, the coup attempt was “God’s gift”. All in all, he turned the coup attempt into his path for greater power.
Turkey has not returned to “normal” since the coup attempt in July 2016. While rights and freedoms have always been problematic areas in Turkey, the deterioration of the rule of law has reached its lowest point in the country’s history. The two-year state of emergency was lifted in July 2018, but new counterterrorism legislation was introduced the following month. These new legislative measures are akin to the sweeping and repressive measures under the state of emergency.
It can be argued that the severe measures imposed during and after the Gezi protests and how the government handled the process marked a turning point from “rule of law” towards “rule by law”. However, the 15 July coup attempt even ended “rule by law”.
Turkey has been facing increasing intense political polarization, and dramatic curbing of political rights and civil liberties since the 15 July 2016 coup attempt. In 2017, constitutional changes were adopted turning the country into a fully presidential system; centralizing all political power concentrated in the hands of the President. The new presidential system of government expanded executive powers to unprecedented levels in Turkey’s history. The President is entitled to rule by decree and appoint officials and judges, eradicating key checks on executive power.
‘Turkish style presidential system’s nature may be best described as “winner takes all”, and those with oppositional views are accused of being “threats against national security” and “conspiring to topple the government”.
Rule of law
The fundamental problem in Turkey in terms of freedoms and rights is the erosion of the rule of law which has reached unparalleled levels. Exercising the rule of law has always been problematic in the country; however, since the July 2016 coup attempt, the erosion of the rule of law has reached incomparable levels, the human rights situation has deteriorated sharply, human rights abuses have spread to a wide range of sectors not previously affected, and the mass targeting of certain professions can only be described as anomalous.
Once the rule of law is eroded, naturally, all segments of society are affected. In Turkey, in recent years, the law has become a tool to harass, intimidate and silence any kind of opposition, rather than a tool to deliver justice. President Erdoğan has begun purging all opposition to his rule with the pretext of “national security threats” and “attempts of toppling the government”.
Of particular concern is the return of torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, including deaths in custody and reported cases of enforced disappearances, allegedly perpetrated by security officials.
As the right to life and physical integrity is jeopardized, other rights and fundamental freedoms are severely undermined as well. The rights to freedom of speech, to a fair trial, and to freedom of assembly as well as thought, conscience, and religion are all compromised. The tearing of the social fabric has contributed to a rise in discrimination and persecution, while already disadvantaged groups such as women, children, sexual, ethnic, and religious minorities, and refugees see their rights further eroded.
As a result, according to the Rule of Law Index 2023 by the World Justice Project (WJP), Turkey is ranked 117th among 142 countries in terms of rule of law. The Index has ranked Turkey last among 15 countries in the group of Eastern European and Central Asian countries. Likewise, when the income group is considered, Turkey is ranked 39th among 41 countries in the category of upper-middle income countries.
The Kavala case
The case of Osman Kavala illustrates Turkey’s travel from rule of law to rule by law and then rule by total arbitrariness.
In a country where the rule of law prevails, when there is a “crime” or an unlawful action, first, evidence is collected, and based on this evidence, a suspect is identified. Once you have a suspect, legal procedures start. Let’s underline the most important factor here: to start the whole process, first there must be crime or an unlawful action.
But in Turkey, the system works the opposite way: First the “suspect” is identified. The suspect can be a human rights defender, a journalist, an opinion maker, a taxi driver; it doesn’t matter. What matters is that this suspect somehow engaged in an action which is not in line with the government’s policy. This action can be expressing an opinion, attending a protest, “liking” a tweet, sharing a social media post…
Once you have the suspect, then you work hard to invent a crime to criminalize the person. Since the action that the person has engaged in is not listed as a crime in the Criminal Code, the judiciary gets “over-creative”.
This is the story of Osman Kavala.
Kavala is a human rights defender, peace activist, advocate of pluralism, businessman and more. He has always been a respected intellectual who devoted his resources to making Turkey a better place.
Kavala was taken into custody on 18 October 2017 and arrested on 1 November. In the beginning, many people thought that this was a mistake, and he would be released soon.
As of today, Osman Kavala is still in prison as a convict. He is sentenced to “aggravated life imprisonment”.
What kind of unspeakable crime has Osman Kavala committed to deserve the highest possible prison sentence within Turkey’s criminal system?
Well, nobody has the answer to this question.
We don’t know what crime Osman Kavala committed.
But we do know well what kinds of deeds he has done to be framed as a “criminal”.
Osman Kavala has always stood in solidarity with peaceful dissent. He supported the rights and freedoms of politicians, journalists, and academics, who those in power tried to silence. He supported nongovernmental organizations working in the field of human and civil rights.
Kavala also founded an NGO himself; “Anadolu Kültür” (Anatolia Culture), which sought to expand the production and sharing of culture and art works, emphasizing cultural diversity and cultural rights, supporting local initiatives, and strengthening regional and international collaborations. Anadolu Kültür also spearheaded the projects establishing cultural dialogue with Armenia as an international project. Locally, the NGO tried to create venues utilizing Kurdish language and supporting Kurdish cultural activities.
After his detention, Kavala was accused of various crimes by Erdoğan himself personally, as well as by pro-government media outlets. Despite public accusations that aimed to justify the pre-trial detention, it took 16 months for the official judiciary indictment to emerge.
Eventually, after having been jailed for almost 1.5 years, Kavala was officially accused of “planning, financing and organizing” the Gezi Park protests. A 657-page long indictment seeking aggravated life imprisonment for 16 defendants including Kavala was adopted on March 4, 2019, by the Istanbul 30th High Criminal Court.
Six court hearings were held between June 2019 and February 2020. Throughout the process, the judiciary itself has been violating the laws at different levels, ranging from taking testimony of a witness without defendant’s lawyer’s presence to dismissing the verdicts of the European Court of Human Rights on a whim.
The European Court of Human Rights itself announced its verdict on December 10, 2019, and demanded the “immediate release” of Osman Kavala. In order to block the possibility of release, the local court dismissed the decision by stating that the Ministry of Justice must decide on the release first and used this unlawful excuse to prolong the imprisonment of Kavala for two more hearings.
On February 18, 2020, the court finally ordered the acquittal of Osman Kavala and the other defendants. But Kavala was never released: instead, a new arrest warrant was issued regarding the same investigation.
The vehicle that was supposed to take him home after his acquittal was redirected to the Police Headquarters; and the day after his “release”, Kavala was formally arrested again and sent back to prison.
Osman Kavala had to wait in prison for almost 8 more months for the new indictment. The indictment reiterated former accusations as well as new ones – such as accusations that Kavala was involved in espionage and took part in instigating the 2016 attempted military coup. The new indictment also accused Kavala of “managing activities which trigger social disintegration by supposedly funding divisive projects directed at citizens, particularly those from Kurdish, Armenian, Greek, Christian, Jewish, Assyrian or Yezidi backgrounds.”
The first hearing of this new case took place on December 18, 2020, and in about 10 days, the Constitutional Court of Turkey ruled that Kavala’s detention does not violate his right to liberty and security guaranteed under Article 19 of the Constitution by 8 to 7 votes. Nonetheless, the President of the Constitutional Court and six of the Court’s justices clearly put forward that the charges and the detention are incompatible with the Constitution and the norms of ECtHR. Chief Justice Zühtü Arslan said: “Let alone the strong indication of the existence of a charge of political or military espionage on which the applicant was arrested, not even a simple suspicion could be presented.”
Exhausting legal process reached an even more tragic climax when Osman Kavala was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for the crime of “attempting to overthrow the government of Turkey or preventing the government of Turkey from performing its duties” on April 25, 2022.
The judicial process in Turkey officially ended on September 28, 2023; when the 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation upheld the aggravated life imprisonment sentence. As he became a convict sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment, he will be kept under the harshest prison conditions in place in Turkey with minimum communication with the outside world.
The Osman Kavala case provides a powerful example of the erosion of the rule of law in Turkey. It illustrates how arbitrariness replaces universal standards and how political preferences overwrite legal norms. In this case, “evidence” is replaced by third-class conspiracy theories. The Kavala case eradicates the legal norms as well as the rule of reason.
The author is a journalist and human rights activist, and a founding member of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly in Turkey.
Peščanik.net, 02.12.2023.
