Former chief of army says he was wiretapped
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Hürriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 09, 2009 00:00
ANKARA - Former Chief of Staff retired Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt says he was wiretapped illegally when he was serving at the head of the Armed Forces. His remarks draw fire from a Cabinet minister who says he should have filed a complaint at the time if he had known
Amid growing concerns of human rights violations on the margins of the Ergenekon investigation, the country’s former top general has claimed that he was also wiretapped during his term of office between 2006 and 2008.
"My phones were wiretapped; I have no doubt," former Chief of General Staff Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt said late Thursday in an interview with private television channel Kanal D. "The act was detected, but I do not know who wiretapped me," he said. Wiretapping claims have been surfacing lately, especially after the start of the Ergenekon investigation in 2007. The Ergenekon organization allegedly sought to overthrow the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, government between 2003 and 2004. Many retired generals, academics, prominent journalists and civil society were arrested.
Transport minister reacts
Büyükanıt’s claims of wiretapping drew reaction from Transportation Minister Binali Yıldırım. "If he felt he was being wiretapped, he should have filed a complaint," he said, speaking to private television channel CNNTürk on Friday. "Wiretapping cases have not started with the AKP and they will not come to an end hereafter. It is not under the authority of the prime minister or any other," he said, adding that technically, it was not possible to prevent it.
Büyükanıt did not disclose the perpetrators of the wiretapping but did not rule the possibility that he was listened to by the police. He said that the head of the Police Intelligence Unit, Sabri Uzun, submitted a report about him to a parliamentary commission, which he said was full of lies. "When I complained about him, he was taken from his office," Büyükanıt said. Meanwhile, the General Staff Friday defined Büyükanıt’s statements as "his own views" during its weekly press briefing. "They are the views of a retired staff member, we can not make comments about them," the General Staff’s spokesman said.
Just two months before Büyükanıt’s retirement, two four-star generals, Şener Eruygur and Hurşit Tolon, were arrested as part of Ergenekon investigation. Büyükanıt came into spotlight when he did nothing to stop the arrests. "There was nothing I could do. Turkey is a state of law and according to penal codes there is nothing I could do to stop it," he said.
When asked about his personal opinion on the Ergenekon probe, Büyükanıt said: "Ergenekon has expanded so much that there might be people who are really involved in crime. However, there also might be some small groups that came together for the love of country but later diverged from the aim." He added that the judiciary would reveal all of those groups.
Other important evidence for Ergenekon prosecutors was the diary of Özden Örnek, a former Navy Forces Commander, which stated that Eruygur and Tolon’s efforts to stage a coup were nixed by former Chief of General Staff Hilmi Özkök in 2004. "I have launched a probe in the army. I found no evidence or documents about it," he said about the diary.
E-memo shows sensitivity toward secularism
One of the most striking incidents during Büyükanıt’s tenure was the military’s intervention into the presidential election in the spring of 2007.
A statement posted on the military’s Web site around midnight on April 27, 2007 urged the government to remain loyal to the republic’s fundamental principle of secularism.
It was called an e-memorandum and drew reactions from the ruling party and the European Union. "I wrote it myself and I am not regretful for it," Büyükanıt said.
"It was not a memorandum but a declaration that showed the military’s sensitivity on secularism." Büyükanıt also turned down the claims that the declaration, which came prior to the general elections, increased the ruling AKP’s votes, and argued that the Constitutional Court’s ruling on closing a case against the AKP justified the General Staff in terms of its concerns about secularism.
The court ruled that the AKP had become the focal point of anti-secular activities. The military statement had also drawn nagative international reaction.
"My phones were wiretapped; I have no doubt," former Chief of General Staff Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt said late Thursday in an interview with private television channel Kanal D. "The act was detected, but I do not know who wiretapped me," he said. Wiretapping claims have been surfacing lately, especially after the start of the Ergenekon investigation in 2007. The Ergenekon organization allegedly sought to overthrow the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, government between 2003 and 2004. Many retired generals, academics, prominent journalists and civil society were arrested.
Transport minister reacts
Büyükanıt’s claims of wiretapping drew reaction from Transportation Minister Binali Yıldırım. "If he felt he was being wiretapped, he should have filed a complaint," he said, speaking to private television channel CNNTürk on Friday. "Wiretapping cases have not started with the AKP and they will not come to an end hereafter. It is not under the authority of the prime minister or any other," he said, adding that technically, it was not possible to prevent it.
Büyükanıt did not disclose the perpetrators of the wiretapping but did not rule the possibility that he was listened to by the police. He said that the head of the Police Intelligence Unit, Sabri Uzun, submitted a report about him to a parliamentary commission, which he said was full of lies. "When I complained about him, he was taken from his office," Büyükanıt said. Meanwhile, the General Staff Friday defined Büyükanıt’s statements as "his own views" during its weekly press briefing. "They are the views of a retired staff member, we can not make comments about them," the General Staff’s spokesman said.
Just two months before Büyükanıt’s retirement, two four-star generals, Şener Eruygur and Hurşit Tolon, were arrested as part of Ergenekon investigation. Büyükanıt came into spotlight when he did nothing to stop the arrests. "There was nothing I could do. Turkey is a state of law and according to penal codes there is nothing I could do to stop it," he said.
When asked about his personal opinion on the Ergenekon probe, Büyükanıt said: "Ergenekon has expanded so much that there might be people who are really involved in crime. However, there also might be some small groups that came together for the love of country but later diverged from the aim." He added that the judiciary would reveal all of those groups.
Other important evidence for Ergenekon prosecutors was the diary of Özden Örnek, a former Navy Forces Commander, which stated that Eruygur and Tolon’s efforts to stage a coup were nixed by former Chief of General Staff Hilmi Özkök in 2004. "I have launched a probe in the army. I found no evidence or documents about it," he said about the diary.
E-memo shows sensitivity toward secularism
One of the most striking incidents during Büyükanıt’s tenure was the military’s intervention into the presidential election in the spring of 2007.
A statement posted on the military’s Web site around midnight on April 27, 2007 urged the government to remain loyal to the republic’s fundamental principle of secularism.
It was called an e-memorandum and drew reactions from the ruling party and the European Union. "I wrote it myself and I am not regretful for it," Büyükanıt said.
"It was not a memorandum but a declaration that showed the military’s sensitivity on secularism." Büyükanıt also turned down the claims that the declaration, which came prior to the general elections, increased the ruling AKP’s votes, and argued that the Constitutional Court’s ruling on closing a case against the AKP justified the General Staff in terms of its concerns about secularism.
The court ruled that the AKP had become the focal point of anti-secular activities. The military statement had also drawn nagative international reaction.