Turkish fault lines laid bare as 86 stand trial over 'coup plot'

A SHADOWY right-wing group went on trial in Turkey yesterday on charges of trying to topple the government.

Those accused include a retired general, the leader of a small leftist and nationalist party, a newspaper editor, a best-selling author and a former university dean.

They are claimed to be part of a nationalist network called Ergenekon – which takes its name from a legendary valley in Central Asia believed to be the ancestral homeland of Turks – and of plotting an armed uprising against prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government.

The trial, at the heavily guarded Silivri prison on the outskirts of Istanbul, began in disarray as officials sought to seat several hundred people in a cramped courtroom.

"An imaginary group has been invented. I am accused of being a leader of this group, but I don't even know this group," Captain Muzaffer Tekin told the judges as he sat in court with fellow defendants, flanked by 20 police officers. "I see this as a political plot."

The trial amounts to an exploration of the key division in Turkey between a growing Islamic class with political and economic clout and a backlash from secular foes, some of whom have purportedly turned to violence.

The conflict eased in July when the constitutional court ruled against the closure of the ruling Justice and Development Party on the grounds that it was steering the country toward Islamic rule, but imposed a fine as a warning.

The trial revisits the battle over Turkey's political and social future, with government opponents saying the case is a bid to cow them with the courts.

The government, meanwhile, says it is an opportunity to expose the influence of the "deep state", a shadowy network of alleged extremists with links to state institutions, including the military.

Some 1,500 people gathered outside the courthouse in support of the defendants, holding Turkish flags and portraits of the suspects. They shouted slogans against the government as well as the United States and the European Union, reflecting the nationalist feeling of many Turks that outside influences seek to undermine their country.

"We want a fully independent Turkey," one sign read. Protesters also held posters of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the national founder who enshrined secularism as a way of life and restored Turkish pride after the fall of the Ottoman Empire.

Prosecutors say the defendants were behind attacks or attempted attacks on prominent Turks. These included the 2006 assault on Turkey's administrative court that killed a judge and on the pro-secular Cumhuriyet newspaper – allegedly carried out by secularists impersonating Islamists. The violence led to secular demonstrations against the government.

The indictment alleges the suspects planned to kill the prime minister, the Nobel literature laureate Orhan Pamuk, prominent Kurdish politicians and the country's military chief.

Some suspects face other charges, including possessing explosives, obtaining classified documents and provoking military disobedience.

Most of the arrests came after police raided the home of a retired non-commissioned officer in Istanbul last year and seized a cache of hand grenades.

"This is the first time in world history such a comedy happens," Professor Kemal Alamdaroglu, a suspect in the trial, told reporters outside the courthouse. "What I had done as a rector was all in line with the constitution and laws. If I am accused, it is because of that."

Of the 86 people on trial, only 46 are in custody. Other defendants who are on trial include Veli Kucuk, a retired brigadier general; Dogu Perincek, head of a small nationalist party; Ilhan Selcuk, the editor of the nationalist, leftist Cumhuriyet newspaper. All are critics of the government.

"We have our doubts about whether the court process will be just; we believe some of those behind the crimes have not been brought to justice," said Filiz Kilicgun, a lawyer who is taking part as an observer at the trial.

The trial, which is expected to take months to complete, was adjourned until Thursday.

Country where next attempt to topple government is never far off

THE threat of a coup in Turkey is not one to be taken lightly. The country's post-war history is littered with military interventions.

In 1960, General Cemal Gursel, commander of the land forces, demanded reforms, fearing the ruling Democrat Party was threatening the secular principles of the state. He resigned his post when his demands were refused.

The army acted and a military coup was carried out. Its leaders established a national unity committee and chose Gen Gursel as chairman. The main purpose of the committee was to destroy the ruling party and prepare a new constitution. Purges took place and, of the 601 people tried, 464 were found guilty. Three former ministers, including the prime minister, Adnan Menderes, were executed and 12 others, including President Celal Bayar, had death sentences commuted to life imprisonment.

In 1971 Turkey had its "Coup by Memorandum". The military warned the government to restore order after months of strikes and street fighting between leftists and nationalists. Prime minister Suleyman Demirel stepped down and a coalition of conservatives and technocrats set out to restore order under the supervision of the military. Martial law was established in several provinces.

In 1980, the senior command of the army, led by Gen Kenan Evren, carried out a bloodless coup. The action followed a resurgence of street fighting. Leading politicians were arrested and parliament, political parties and trade unions were dissolved. A five-member National Security Council took control, implementing a provisional constitution that gave almost unlimited power to military commanders.

The "Post-Modern Coup" took place in 1997. Prime minister Necmettin Erbakan, denounced by opponents as a danger to the country's secular order, stepped down under pressure from the military, business, the judiciary and fellow politicians. The generals saw themselves compelled to act to defend the secular state.