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Mentality problem
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It would be a great underestimation to consider the crusade of the government on the Doğan Group as a "routine" operation against tax evasion or a landmark manifestation of the Finance Ministry that even the biggest media group of the country could be asked to give an account of some alleged faulty dealings. What’s being undertaken by the government is nothing less than trying to silence whatever opposition might be left in the country and consolidate absolute rule of the absolute leader, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Main opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal was correct right from the beginning in declaring that what we have encountered as a direct and serious challenge to the democratic republic adhering to the supremacy of law. Naturally, Doğan Holding will take the cut-throat fine of almost $500 million to court and the court will rule to what extend the Finance Ministry acted to punish an alleged tax evasion attempt or to suppress critics of the government. What is very clear for us is that Turkish democracy is facing a serious and existential threat in the hands of a political majority obsessed with majoritarianism, which is getting more and more frustrated with critical voices and which considers silencing of the opposition as a life or death matter for itself.
The government is fed up with the warnings that having almost absolute parliamentary majority does not give the ruling AKP the absolute right to rule the country in any fashion it likes and that it is required to conform with the Constitution, laws and regulations as well as abide with the norms of democracy.
Government’s bad track record
This government has a very bad track record in its relations with the media. The nation must remember what had happened to the Uzan media group, as well as to the Dinç Bilgin empire or to the tiny yet powerful HaberTürk TV channel. Today, there is no Uzan group. The newspaper of Uzans is now one of the most prominent elements of the allegiant media while the TV of that group was bought by the Doğan Media Group and maintains its independent reporting tradition. The ATV channel of the Dinç Bilgin as well as the Sabah newspaper of that group were sold to the company of the son-in-law of the president after the banking watchdog confiscated them because of the collapsed bank of Bilgin. Who paid for the ATV and Sabah? Two state-owned banks opened an unprecedented credit to the son-in-law’s company. That was not enough, the president, prime minister and ministers paid visits to Qatar, convinced the emir of Qatar and the Qatar Development Fund became a partner of the company of the son-in-law in taking over Sabah and ATV. The end result? Sabah has become the flagship of the allegiant media. Does anyone remember what had happened to HaberTürk’s Tuncay Özkan, who is now behind bars in connection with the so-called Ergenekon trial? Such an immense tax fine was imposed on it that Özkan was compelled to sell the TV channel to yet another businessman supporting the world view and political approaches of the AKP and Premier Erdoğan. Step by step since the Nov. 3, 2002 landslide AKP victories for Erdoğan and his gang of merry men in the party and in the flourishing "green" business community are out to convert Turkey into a rose garden devoid of any thorns.
The action they have taken on Doğan Media Group was the most blatant one due to the reason that the fine was imposed with some trivial charges that I believe will all be invalidated by the court. The problem is the fact that a court process will take years and the Doğan group will suffer a lot in the mean time. As I tried to explain the other day, the fine was imposed on grounds of being eight days late in reporting the sale of 25 percent of the shares of the Doğan TV company to a German company. Doğan documented that due to the Christmas holiday in Germany the sale could not be completed on Dec. 24, 2006 and that the actual sale was done on Jan. 2, 2007. Was the sale reported? Yes. Did Doğan pay the tax required to be paid? Yes. But the Finance Ministry is charging that the tax ought to be paid in 2006, not in 2007. Was there any difference between 2006 tax rate and the one in 2007? No. Was everything recorded in Doğan books? Yes. Where is the tax evasion attempt then? It is obvious that the ministry was not after eating grapes but rather to beat the vineyard owner as the saying goes. Coupled with the boycott calls of the premier, the scenario implemented against Doğan underlines the serious mentality problem Turkey is facing. What’s at stake is not Doğan; it is freedom of thought, right to criticize and Turkish democracy itself.
The government is fed up with the warnings that having almost absolute parliamentary majority does not give the ruling AKP the absolute right to rule the country in any fashion it likes and that it is required to conform with the Constitution, laws and regulations as well as abide with the norms of democracy.
Government’s bad track record
This government has a very bad track record in its relations with the media. The nation must remember what had happened to the Uzan media group, as well as to the Dinç Bilgin empire or to the tiny yet powerful HaberTürk TV channel. Today, there is no Uzan group. The newspaper of Uzans is now one of the most prominent elements of the allegiant media while the TV of that group was bought by the Doğan Media Group and maintains its independent reporting tradition. The ATV channel of the Dinç Bilgin as well as the Sabah newspaper of that group were sold to the company of the son-in-law of the president after the banking watchdog confiscated them because of the collapsed bank of Bilgin. Who paid for the ATV and Sabah? Two state-owned banks opened an unprecedented credit to the son-in-law’s company. That was not enough, the president, prime minister and ministers paid visits to Qatar, convinced the emir of Qatar and the Qatar Development Fund became a partner of the company of the son-in-law in taking over Sabah and ATV. The end result? Sabah has become the flagship of the allegiant media. Does anyone remember what had happened to HaberTürk’s Tuncay Özkan, who is now behind bars in connection with the so-called Ergenekon trial? Such an immense tax fine was imposed on it that Özkan was compelled to sell the TV channel to yet another businessman supporting the world view and political approaches of the AKP and Premier Erdoğan. Step by step since the Nov. 3, 2002 landslide AKP victories for Erdoğan and his gang of merry men in the party and in the flourishing "green" business community are out to convert Turkey into a rose garden devoid of any thorns.
The action they have taken on Doğan Media Group was the most blatant one due to the reason that the fine was imposed with some trivial charges that I believe will all be invalidated by the court. The problem is the fact that a court process will take years and the Doğan group will suffer a lot in the mean time. As I tried to explain the other day, the fine was imposed on grounds of being eight days late in reporting the sale of 25 percent of the shares of the Doğan TV company to a German company. Doğan documented that due to the Christmas holiday in Germany the sale could not be completed on Dec. 24, 2006 and that the actual sale was done on Jan. 2, 2007. Was the sale reported? Yes. Did Doğan pay the tax required to be paid? Yes. But the Finance Ministry is charging that the tax ought to be paid in 2006, not in 2007. Was there any difference between 2006 tax rate and the one in 2007? No. Was everything recorded in Doğan books? Yes. Where is the tax evasion attempt then? It is obvious that the ministry was not after eating grapes but rather to beat the vineyard owner as the saying goes. Coupled with the boycott calls of the premier, the scenario implemented against Doğan underlines the serious mentality problem Turkey is facing. What’s at stake is not Doğan; it is freedom of thought, right to criticize and Turkish democracy itself.
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