The Attempted Turkish Coup and why it Failed
- In Foreign Policy
- 11:50 AM, Jul 17, 2016
- Ranabir Bhattacharyya
The land of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk has once again blinked with a military coup. Whether the world should be thankful or regretful or not, is a different question. The coup attempt certainly highlights the fact that Turkey is facing a bigger crisis and it is too far to say whether it is on the path for revival or not. Be it President Erdogan or PM Binali Yildirim, the political strata at the helm of power in Turkey is facing the heat. Apart from the arrest of more than 2839 soldiers, more than 160 civilians have been killed and 1440 people wounded in the whole process. As far as the eyewitness accounts are concerned, different places in Ankara, Istanbul witnessed repeated explosions and gunfire. The government authorities have categorically said that 104 suspected coup plotters have been killed and 2745 Turkish judges have been dismissed to thwart any possible 'opposition' to the existing throne of 'Turkish democracy'.
Incidentally Turkey is not at all unaccustomed to military coups. There had been four attempts all together in the years 1960, 1971, 1980 and 1997. The present Turkish government is vulnerable. The terrorist attack last month in Istanbul is still being discussed about and so is the ISIS encroachment in Turkey. Let's not forget the spillover of the ongoing Syrian war and Kurdish insurgency, issues which are bound to have immense consequences on the future of Turkey.
As far as this failed coup is concerned, one can point to several forces which were pivotal in plotting this proactive destabilizing act. Interestingly, this time around, the coup plotters didn't opt for tough military resistance, which is a common version of the much hyped 'Arab spring'. Without understanding Gulen movement, one can never understand or comprehend the present political crisis in Turkey. The impact of Fethullah Gulen, a Sunni cleric plays a pivotal role in Turkey dynamics who has millions of followers in Turkey itself. The Gulen allied organization ‘Alliance for shared Values’ have denied any involvement in the failed coup. One must not forget that Gulen is an officially announced terrorist in Turkey and since 2013 after a fall out, has become cause of great concern for the Erdogan government. Thus there is every reason to believe that Erdogan and his fellow aides will never miss any opportunity to criticize or pinpoint at Gulen and his followers.
As far as the failures of this specific coup is concerned, some sections of analysts believe that President Erdogan 'stage-managed' this coup to grab more power, but that doesn't seem to be believable looking at the impact it had and mass arrests. President Erdogan and his ministers have blamed the Gulen movement for attempting to destabilize Turkey, which can be a logical conclusion looking at recent events in the Turkish domain. Certainly, this coup will help Erdogan and his aides to 'clean' the Turkish army of the Gulen sympathizers and supporters.
But, there had been suspicion that the mode of operation of Gulenists does not necessarily imply coup attempts or junta governments. They have always gone all out in campaigns but resorting to military uprising has been something new. Adding to all speculations, the coup plotters were calling themselves something very similar to what Mustafa Kemal Ataturk coined years ago. Their reference to 'Peace at Home Council' sounded very similar to Ataturk's 'Peace at home, peace in the world'.
There is no denying that the stern action taken by the Erdogan government has probably given the indication of a possible counter coup in the days to come. Be it ISIS ascendancy or the Kurdish insurgence, Erdogan and Turkey have tough days in the near future. The topsy turvy political route in dealing with Syrian crisis also needs to be assessed. On one hand Turkey has emphasized the need to have 'normalcy' in relation with Syria, whereas they have called for an end to the notorious Assad regime. The Turkish democracy is presently facing an uphill task as far as the career of the authoritarian president Erdogan is concerned. No doubt, mass bloodshed and political instability seems to be a new reality for Turkey, which is slowly becoming an Islamist state.
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