Başbuğ couldn’t impress anyone

I have come to the conclusion that Başbuğ could not impress anybody and minds are still confused. As I mentioned in my article yesterday, this speech has been expected for a long time. Başbuğ must have had the urge to make such a speech because he fanned the flames. The range of people invited showed that it was intended to have the discussion spread on a wide range. In military and in civil circles expectations were present. One segment was expecting the first chief to put his fist on the table; the other expected him to submit. Both sides did not obtain their expectations. They were disappointed. Başbuğ preferred a compromise. He started off with philosophical and abstract concepts and theorized his attitude. That’s why he could not impress anyone. Everybody got out of the speech whatever he or she wanted.

Today let’s leave this aside and take some parts of the speech with a pair of tweezers for examination. An aspect that attracted my attention the most and was mentioned in the paper yesterday the most was that despite the Turkish Armed Forces, or TSK emphasizing its loyalty to democracy it perceives itself having equal status as the civil authority and openly expresses it. No matter how much Başbuğ states his loyalty to democracy and to civil authority, which speaks the last word, he stressed the fact that regarding military matters an autonomous system is needed and if the military view and advice are not considered, then responsibility will fall on politicians. He emphasized that not all decisions are in the hands of the civil administration and the military needs to act together in an equal way with the civil authority.

According to some the Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi, or AKP, lost 9 points in local elections, which reflects the effort to elevate the military’s status. It is desired to put the balance back in place. One other striking point encoded in Başbuğ’s speech was his brisk reaction to the Fethullah Gülen community. This approach is not anything new. But this time is was more brisk. This time he stressed the community’s image shaping the socio-political life and exaggerating their strength. Başbuğ exhibited an attitude. Could the Gülen community be the addressee of such a polemic? How decent could it be for the TSK to address such a particular community? If we speak of danger wouldn’t it have sufficed to just draw attention to the community structure? Doesn’t such a "direct reference" wake a thought in the mind of the community, "They take us as an addressee so we really must be strong."

When following the media you’ll notice that one part of society is very excited about Başbuğ’s speech and talks about a relaxation in the Kurdish issue, even if it was "implied." Yes, his approach was human. He tried to understand people in the region and exhibited an attitude implying empathy. He talked about more welfare, equal opportunity, provision of personal development for people in the region and that the perception of unjust treatment needs to change. And with implicit self-criticism he said that some government officials in the region make mistakes in their approach to the people. Be it the part of his speech about terrorists being human as well and a new act facilitating the retreat from the mountains have attracted the attention of many commentators. Başbuğ perceiving terrorists as human is not new. He has only rephrased old sayings like preventing those who want to go up into the mountains from doing so or encouraging those up there to come down into an academic structure. Some asked, "Did the military give a green light for a pardon?" Hope it’s true. The part where he explained the difference between "The Turkish people" and "People of Turkey" was in my opinion the most striking indicator of a change of mind in the military. Imagine "Being from Turkey" instead of the existing "Being Turkish" statement in all headquarters is stressed. Doesn’t only the thought of it show this novelty?

An important tendency that I noticed regarding the Kurdish issue is Başbuğ’s positive and careful approach regarding relations with the northern Iraqi Kurdish administration. In old times the military used to criticize Iraqi Kurds. Now there is a moderate expectation.

Gen. Başbuğ has placed himself in a good position on the agenda. Now we learn that he will share his view of "up-to-date" matters in a press conference. We are to expect a more striking press conference regarding the two important fault lines: Kurdish issue and political Islam. I wonder if the general staff requests a better role instead of the low profile for the past two years in matters like Ergenekon, PKK, regional issues and political reaction. He wanted to satisfy the retired officers and voices from military quarters without crossing the democratic lines. In this speech I had expected a self-criticism on part of the TSK regarding the past.