Crowds protest Ergenekon probe

Two years after the first republican rallies, thousands gathered in Ankara yesterday to protest a wave of arrests of university academics, journalists and others accused of involvement in an alleged plot to topple the ruling party.

The protesters who filled Tandoğan Square waved Turkish flags, carried posters of the Republic’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, chanting slogans such as: "Either independence or death," "Let the hands stretching to the judiciary break" and "Turkey is secular and will remain secular."

The demonstration was organized by the Kemalist Thought Association, or ADD, and backed by a number of civil-society organizations."This rally is a reaction to the Ergenekon investigation; many believed we were scared of the Ergenekon issue and we gave up," the ADD’s deputy chairman, Professor Sina Akşin, told the private television channel NTV. "[But] Atatürk’s revolution is not a luxury... For Turks to live in this land there is a need for Atatürk’s reforms. We are trying to keep them alive."

More than 200 people have been charged as part of the Ergenekon investigation into the alleged conspiracy aimed at toppling the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, government. The first evidence of the organization’s existence came in July 2007, when a weapons arsenal was found in a home in Istanbul. The detentions have been contested by the country’s secularists, who say the investigation is an act of intimidation on the part of the government.

"The Ergenekon probe is the biggest conspiracy in Turkish history," said Akşin. "The Association for Supporting Contemporary Life, or ÇYDD, whose branches were searched in police raids as part of the Ergenekon probe, and the Retired Officers’ Association declined to join the rally.

The ÇYDD was among the organizers of the original republican rallies held between April 14 and May 27, 2007.

Hundreds of thousands of people rallied in several cities in 2007 in support of secularism amid a row over voting for the country’s next president. The protesters were concerned that the AKP’s candidate for the post, Abdullah Gül, remained loyal to his Islamic roots. The military also entered the debate over the presidential elections with an e-memorandum that pushed the country into political deadlock and then into snap elections on July 22, 2007, that again ended with an overwhelming victory by the AKP.

Economic crisis also on the agenda

After the first Republican rallies, it was a subject of debate whether yesterday’s demonstration would also see mass attendance. At least 30,000 people joined the rally in Ankara, including protesters who traveled from other cities, according to reports. Although conceived of as a rally in support of secularism, Republican values and the rule of law, yesterday’s demonstration also included many protesters slamming the global financial downturn, which the prime minister says has bypassed Turkey.

"There is a severe economic and political crisis ahead of us. The way to overcome this is the six arrows of Kemalism," said ADD Secretary General Suay Karaman, who complained of rising unemployment and poverty in the country. "[Atatürk’s] principles will guide us as they did in the past."

Tamer Levent, chairman of the foundation for the staff of the State Theater, Opera and Ballet, asked the crowd: "Why are we here? There are things that are not going well, aren’t there?" He likened some developments taking place in the name of democracy to a football match, saying: "Members of one of the teams are continuously being kicked. The referee is ignoring the footballer who is doing the kicking while disqualifying the other team’s players. Fair play is a must in a football match."

"The lack of law and unfairness cannot continue," added poet Ataol Behramoğlu. Tuncay Alemdaroğlu, the head of the Turkish Law Board, said followers of Atatürk and supporters of a secular Republic were facing attempts to suppress them.

After the demonstration, protesters marched to Atatürk’s mausoleum. Police had heightened security measures during the rally, bringing in nearly 4,000 officers and searching every protester closely. Ambulances and health officials treated protesters who fell ill due to the high temperatures. A number of mobile toilets were also installed at the site.