Today's Zaman's Ihsan Dagi wrote a piece about the Sladgehammer case.
The Balyoz coup trial, which started on Dec. 16, 2010, was concluded on Friday.
Most of the 365 defendants have been sentenced to 20, 18 or 16 years imprisonment. With one exception, all of those who have been acquitted are non-commissioned military officers. This shows that the court has conducted a fair and careful review vis-à-vis the low-ranking officers, who might have been involved in the coup attempt unknowingly. Of course, there is also the appeals process, following which the case will be finalized. However, though there might be some modifications to the convictions, it could be said that it is established the crime of coup plotting has taken place.
In the criticisms raised against the Balyoz trial, it is commonly argued that the case was politically motivated. Of course, a coup investigation has a political dimension. In a country like Turkey with a past of many coups, the people know the meaning of coup well. The impunity in past coups had a political dimension which contributed to the emergence of subsequent coups; the effective action against the coups now has a political aspect as well.
It has been possible to raise political discourse independent of the Kemalist elites and military bureaucracy following the rise of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) to power on Nov. 3, 2002. During this process, some coup attempts have been made against the AK Party. The April 27 memorandum and the Constitutional Court's decision on the presidency of Abdullah Gül were of a political nature; they were explicit support by the judiciary of coups. True, politics is everywhere. But which politics are we talking about?
Is it political preference or action to halt an elected government, stage coups and rely on the state institutions to achieve these goals? Is it not a better policy to create a country where these acts would not go unpunished? Support from people who are sick of coups and who have lost sons to the coups for a government backing coup trials is, true, a political stance.
Besides, the defense side has adopted an extremely political attitude and position since the beginning of the case. They have insistently and frequently argued that the defendants were secular and Kemalist military servicemen, and that for this reason they could not be considered criminals, and that they were dealing with conspiracies performed by the AK Party and the Gülen movement. Back then, nobody complained that this approach could harm the case and put pressure on the court.
Of course, the convicted parties have families and relatives; and they are sad now. I wish this had never happened. We are not happy when others suffer out of revenge. But justice should also be served. Had this coup taken place, I would not have written this column. This is very serious. A serious coup attempt was identified, and a competent independent court investigated it. The updated list of names of people to assume roles in the interim government formed following the coup is out there. We have seen this before. By this ruling, the structure of the Turkish military, which generates coups and harbors the pro-coup juntas, has also been convicted. The military would have remained reconciled to these structures if the Taraf daily had not published the Balyoz coup plans, if brave prosecutors had not initiated a process of investigation and if the government had not backed these initiatives.
And this is exactly what should be questioned. This coup mindset might be in decline now after the Balyoz and Ergenekon cases, but does that show that it is therefore completely gone and eliminated, and that it has not turned into something else? I made this point in my previous column. The army has made many mistakes since Uludere, but because the incidents are not properly identified and investigated, we are unable to understand what is going on. I cannot help wondering whether a different method is being tried against the democratic regime.
There is big difference between the submission of the military to the government and a truly democratic military. And the military has not gone through that process of reform. There is reason for us to believe that further coup attempts in Turkey may be possible.
Tuesday
Sledgehammer Case: Tapes of the Generals
Here is the actual voices of the generals who made a coup attempt to overthrow the elected government in Turkey a few years ago. Remember they got very heavy sentences for their attempts.
Three Former Turkish Generals Get 20 Years
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| Former 1st Army Commander retired Gen. Çetin Doğan (L), former Naval Forces Commander Adm. Özden Örnek (C) and former Air Forces Commander Gen. Halil İbrahim Fırtına (R) have been sentenced to 20 years in prison on coup charges. (Photo: AA) |
21 September 2012 / TODAYSZAMAN.COM
Three former Turkish generals, who were key suspects in the Sledgehammer coup trial, have
been sentenced to 20 years in prison on coup charges, a ruling that is
expected to help curtail the Turkish military's hold on politics.
Former 1st Army Commander
retired Gen. Çetin Doğan, former Air Forces Commander Gen. Halil İbrahim
Fırtına and former Naval Forces Commander Adm. Özden Örnek were
initially given life imprisonment but the court said the three would
only serve 20-year prison sentences because they were unsuccessful in
their bid to topple the government. It acquitted 34 officers in the
case, which has underlined civilian dominance over the once all-powerful
military in Turkey.
Retired Gen. Engin Alan, War Academies Commander Gen. Bilgin Balanlı, retired Gen. Ergin Saygun, former National Security Council (MGK) Secretary-General Şükrü Sarıışık, retired Gen. Nejat Bek, retired Adm. Ahmet Feyyaz Öğütçü and retired Gen. Süha Tanyeri were also each sentenced to 18 years in prison.
Prosecutors had demanded 15-20 year jail sentences for the 365 defendants, 364 of them serving and retired officers.
The court issued 16 year jail sentences for 214 suspects, including the retired Col. Dursun Çiçek and retired military judge Ahmet Zeki Üçok, in the historic coup trial.
Çiçek was arrested on charges of preparing the Action Plan to Fight Reactionaryism, which sought to undermine the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and the religion-based Gülen movement.
Among the 365 suspects, 250 behind bars and the rest pending trial outside of custody. The verdict session was the 108th hearing in the trial.
Suspects entered the courtroom to the applause of viewers, who sang various military anthems as the suspects, most of whom are of military background, walked in.
Four defendants delivered their final statements on the last day. The court adjourned before announcing the verdict.
On Friday, Naval Col. Hakan Mehmet Köktürk, jailed at Maltepe Military Prison, was taken to the İstanbul hospital of the Gülhane Military Academy of Medicine (GATA) reportedly after suffering a heart attack.
İsmail Tepecik, a lawyer for retired Gen. Çetin Doğan, the main suspect in the investigation, said all suspects should be acquitted, speaking to reporters outside the courtroom before the session's start.
Security was tight outside the courtroom on the final day of the hearing. Those who entered the building were frisked and searched with the help of detector dogs. About 500 court viewers, 60 members of the press and 30 lawyers were allowed in.
Some of the highest-ranking former and current members of the military have stood trial in the Sledgehammer case, including Gen. Balanlı, former Air Force Commander retired Gen. Fırtına, former Naval Forces Commander retired Gen. Örnek and former generals Doğan and Saygun, who both served as commanders of the 1st Army.
The 10th High Criminal Court heard the trial. All of the sessions were held at a courthouse built on the property of Silivri Prison. Military suspects in the trial were kept at the military prisons of Hadımköy, Hasdal and Maltepe. The suspects entered the courthouse at 1 p.m.
Presiding Judge Ömer Diken and the other members of the panel of judges entered the courtroom shortly after. After opening the hearing, Diken recalled that the court had adjourned on Thursday to discuss the verdict, but said it had not yet reached a decision. The court adjourned again after the four remaining suspects delivered a final statement.
Retired Gen. Alan, who was elected to Parliament from the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) in the last election, is also among the suspects. Retired Gen. Levent Ersöz is another prime suspect in the investigation. He did not attend Friday's hearing.
While verdicts seemingly have stormed the public and sparked many debates, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan declined to comment on court rulings with regards to the Sledgehammer coup trial. He said the process will continue at least for a while regarding the appeal rights of convicts as they likely will appeal court orders to the Supreme Court of Appeals.
“It is not true to make a comment at the moment. We’ll have the chance to make overall assessment after complement of the process.” Erdoğan said.
Sledgehammer: the beginnings
The first time the Sledgehammer plot was publicly discussed was on Jan. 20, 2010, when the Taraf daily claimed that a group of generals had conspired to overthrow the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government, devising a plot titled the Sledgehammer Security Operation Plan. The daily claimed that among the plans of the generals was bombing the Fatih Mosque, one of İstanbul's biggest, during a busy Friday prayer and other atrocities to shake public confidence in the government. The plot was devised in 2003, according to the paper. The next day, the İstanbul Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation into the claims. Forty retired generals and officers on active duty -- including high-ranking former and current generals or admirals Doğan, Süha Tanyeri, Saygun and Özden Örnek were detained on Feb. 24, 2010.Seven people, including Ramazan Cem Gürdeniz, a senior admiral, were arrested in the first wave of arrest. On Feb. 26, Doğan and retired Gen. Engin Alan testified to specially authorized prosecutor Bilal Bayraktar, and were put under arrest by a decision of the 10th High Criminal Court, facing charges of “attempting to overthrow the government of the Republic of Turkey with the use of force and violence.”
The indictment against the suspects was accepted on July 19, 2010. There were initially 196 suspects -- all of them retired or active duty military officers -- in the trial.
On Dec. 6, 2010, the trial took on a new course when nine sacks of documents were found hidden under the floor tiles at Gölcük Naval Command, detailing the alleged plot to overthrow the AK Party. The first hearing was on Dec. 16, 2010.
In June 2011, four more military officers were arrested in the trial. Prosecutor Hüseyin Ayar completed a second indictment on June 16, indicting 28 defendants, including Gen. Bilgin Balanlı and Gen. İsmail Taş. The indictment was accepted by the court on June 28, 2011, with the prosecutor demanding up to 20 years for the suspects on charges of attempting a coup d'état. On Aug. 15, 2011, the court started hearing the accusations in the second indictment.
A key arrest was made on Sept. 19, 2011, when Senior Col. Ümit Metin -- who was already under arrest as part of a separate investigation into an alleged plot to assassinate several naval admirals -- was arrested as a Sledgehammer suspect.
On Oct. 3, 2011, Gen. Beyazıt Karataş, who was wanted as a suspect, turned himself over to the authorities. Also in October the court merged the two indictments into a single trial. Yet a third indictment -- against 143 suspects -- was accepted on Nov. 23, 2011. This indictment was incorporated into the main trial on Dec. 29, 2011, bringing the total number of suspects in the trial to 365. On March 2 this year, former Chief of General Staff retired Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt and Gendarmerie General Commander Gen. Bekir Kalyoncu testified in court as witnesses. On March 14, retired Gen. Ergin Saygun, another suspect who was wanted by the prosecution, turned himself in. He was arrested on the same day. On March 29, the prosecution delivered its 920-page opinion on the trial. On April 6, the court filed a complaint against 11 lawyers with attempting to influence a fair trial. On Aug. 3, retired Gen. Hilmi Özkök, who was the chief of general staff at the alleged time of drafting of the Sledgehammer plot, testified in court. He said he had warned the generals against crossing the line during a seminar in 2003 on the Sledgehammer plot -- which the defendants said was only a war strategy game. On Aug. 16, the defendants delivered their final statements.
Indictment basics and evidence overview
According to the Sledgehammer Indictment, soon after the general elections of November 2002, a full-fledged coup plan under the leadership of 1st Army commander Doğan was launched to topple the AK Party government. The plot contemplated the bombing of mosques, downing a Turkish fighter jet, the takeover of hospitals and pharmacies, the closing of NGOs, the arrest of journalists and politicians.The indictment also charges that the coup plot was given a dress rehearsal on March 5-7, 2003 in a seminar at the 1st Army Headquarters.
The first evidence against the suspects emerged in January 2010, when an anonymous tipster delivered a suitcase to journalist Mehmet Baransu. The suitcase contained various materials, including documents not related to the investigation. Three CDs -- which formed the backbone of the prosecution's argument -- in the suitcase were the subject of the Sledgehammer investigation. The journalist shared the documents with the prosecutors shortly after obtaining them. The CDs contain documents that mention Sledgehammer and related activities such as operational plans (subplots the generals called Oraj, Suga, Çarşaf, Sakal), a list of civil society organizations that would be closed once the generals were in power, blacklists of individuals from various institutions, journalists to be arrested, vehicles, hospitals and pharmacies to be taken over and personnel assignments. Later, the documents found at Gölcük were added to the pile of evidence against the suspects.
Number of skulls found in Diyarbakır increases to 23
First bone fragments and skulls were accidentally discovered over the past two weeks by some laborers laying pipes in the İçkale neighborhood of Diyarbakır.
Four more skulls were unearthed Wednesday morning during excavations in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır, bringing the total count of human skulls found in the province's historic İçkale neighborhood in the past two weeks to 23.
A representative from the Diyarbakır Prosecutor's Office told the Anatolia news agency that the total increased to 23 following renewed search efforts on Wednesday by a team of 20 experts employed by the Diyarbakır Governor's Office. A large number of bone fragments and a number of skulls were inadvertently discovered last week by laborers laying pipes in an area where the former headquarters of JİTEM, a clandestine intelligence organization within the gendarmerie that is believed to have been responsible for thousands of unsolved murders in eastern and southeastern Turkey in the 1990s, was located. As news emerged on Wednesday about the increase in the skull count, Republican People's Party (CHP) Deputy Chairman Sezgin Tanrıkulu told the ANKA news agency that the situation has reached a grave point.
Tanrıkulu, who is a former president of the Diyarbakır Bar Association, said he is waiting for the Ministry of Justice to make a comprehensive statement as to how the investigations should be carried out and called for a more comprehensive and intensive operation. He urged the government to take measures that are in accordance with international conventions.
“We need photographs of every stage of this excavation [and] in what arrangement these bones and skulls have been found. Is it likely these people were the victims of a massacre? These are questions that need to be asked. It will do no good for ministers to go to the east and be pictured having snowball fights in the snow. This is a serious matter and it requires a serious investigation,” Tanrıkulu said.
On Monday, Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) Diyarbakır deputy Altan Tan called for the establishment of a parliamentary commission to investigate suspected extrajudicial murders by JİTEM and the ongoing excavations in Diyarbakır. Mehmet Emin Aktar, the president of the Diyarbakır Bar Association, told prosecutors on Monday that the use of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) will add to the reliability of the search. Aktar also stated that the geophysics departments of several universities have GPR capable of showing the presence of objects larger than 5 centimeters. This method of detection can search up to 40 meters deep.
The intensive excavations in the area over the past two weeks have raised hopes that light will be shed on some of the unsolved murders that took place during the dark period of the 1990s in the Southeast. Hundreds of people are said to have been tortured at the JİTEM headquarters. Although İçkale was known as one of JİTEM’s execution sites, no excavations in search of human remains were allowed before the discovery in the area because it had been designated an historic site.
Bone fragments and skulls that were unearthed last week have been transported under high security to the Council of Forensic Medicine (ATK) in İstanbul, where DNA tests will be carried out. Blood samples from the relatives of missing persons from Turkey’s Southeast, who continue to seek answers regarding the fate of their loved ones, will then be taken and analyzed in an attempt to identify the bodies.
Tanrıkulu, who is a former president of the Diyarbakır Bar Association, said he is waiting for the Ministry of Justice to make a comprehensive statement as to how the investigations should be carried out and called for a more comprehensive and intensive operation. He urged the government to take measures that are in accordance with international conventions.
“We need photographs of every stage of this excavation [and] in what arrangement these bones and skulls have been found. Is it likely these people were the victims of a massacre? These are questions that need to be asked. It will do no good for ministers to go to the east and be pictured having snowball fights in the snow. This is a serious matter and it requires a serious investigation,” Tanrıkulu said.
On Monday, Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) Diyarbakır deputy Altan Tan called for the establishment of a parliamentary commission to investigate suspected extrajudicial murders by JİTEM and the ongoing excavations in Diyarbakır. Mehmet Emin Aktar, the president of the Diyarbakır Bar Association, told prosecutors on Monday that the use of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) will add to the reliability of the search. Aktar also stated that the geophysics departments of several universities have GPR capable of showing the presence of objects larger than 5 centimeters. This method of detection can search up to 40 meters deep.
The intensive excavations in the area over the past two weeks have raised hopes that light will be shed on some of the unsolved murders that took place during the dark period of the 1990s in the Southeast. Hundreds of people are said to have been tortured at the JİTEM headquarters. Although İçkale was known as one of JİTEM’s execution sites, no excavations in search of human remains were allowed before the discovery in the area because it had been designated an historic site.
Bone fragments and skulls that were unearthed last week have been transported under high security to the Council of Forensic Medicine (ATK) in İstanbul, where DNA tests will be carried out. Blood samples from the relatives of missing persons from Turkey’s Southeast, who continue to seek answers regarding the fate of their loved ones, will then be taken and analyzed in an attempt to identify the bodies.
Silopi excavation reveals bones suspected to belong to missing villagers
Excavations were carried out near the Görümlü Gendarmerie Battalion Headquarters in Görümlü village, Silopi district, Şırnak province. (Photo: AA)
Excavations near the Görümlü Gendarmerie Battalion Headquarters in Görümlü village, Silopi district, Şırnak province for the remains of six villagers allegedly killed 19 years ago revealed three bone fragments on Wednesday.
After a witness testified that he saw the six villagers murdered, the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office issued a statement saying excavations would be carried to search for the villagers' remains at the headquarters. By order of the provincial prosecutor's office, the Silopi Public Prosecutor's Office began to excavate at the Görümlü Gendarmerie Battalion Headquarters.
The witness who had provided information to the prosecutor's office about the six missing villagers said he was there to complete his military service at the time. According to the witness' statement, lead weights were tied to the villagers' feet before they were murdered and buried near the Görümlü gendarmerie headquarters.
A total of 938 bones have been discovered in the region in the past two years at seven different sites in southeastern Turkey that have investigated in an attempt to cast some light on the region's dark history of unsolved murders. Some 530 of these bones were later deemed by forensic investigators to be those of animals.
The existence of death wells has long been an issue of contention. Several people have claimed that JİTEM, a clandestine gendarmerie intelligence unit established in the late 1980s to counter ethnic separatism in the Southeast, was behind the killings of hundreds of people in the region in the 1990s. It was alleged that JİTEM summarily executed a large number of people, doused their bodies in acid and buried them in wells located near facilities belonging to the state-owned Turkish Pipeline Corporation (BOTAŞ) in several southeastern cities.
Şırnak Bar Association Chairman Nurşirevan Elçi, who observed the excavation, said following the dig three bone fragments were found, but the digging had to stop as it was getting dark. He added that they will continue searching on Thursday.
The witness who had provided information to the prosecutor's office about the six missing villagers said he was there to complete his military service at the time. According to the witness' statement, lead weights were tied to the villagers' feet before they were murdered and buried near the Görümlü gendarmerie headquarters.
A total of 938 bones have been discovered in the region in the past two years at seven different sites in southeastern Turkey that have investigated in an attempt to cast some light on the region's dark history of unsolved murders. Some 530 of these bones were later deemed by forensic investigators to be those of animals.
The existence of death wells has long been an issue of contention. Several people have claimed that JİTEM, a clandestine gendarmerie intelligence unit established in the late 1980s to counter ethnic separatism in the Southeast, was behind the killings of hundreds of people in the region in the 1990s. It was alleged that JİTEM summarily executed a large number of people, doused their bodies in acid and buried them in wells located near facilities belonging to the state-owned Turkish Pipeline Corporation (BOTAŞ) in several southeastern cities.
Şırnak Bar Association Chairman Nurşirevan Elçi, who observed the excavation, said following the dig three bone fragments were found, but the digging had to stop as it was getting dark. He added that they will continue searching on Thursday.
Coup suspect confesses to discussing coup at 2003 seminar
A Sledgehammer coup case suspect on Thursday confessed that instead of an official military plan, three action plans regarding the post-coup period were discussed at a seminar in military barracks in 2003, during which preparations were allegedly made for the Sledgehammer coup plot.
Sledgehammer is a suspected coup plot believed to have been devised in 2003 with the aim of unseating the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government through violent acts. According to the Sledgehammer plan, the military was to systematically foment chaos in society through violent acts, among which were bomb attacks on the Fatih and Beyazıt mosques in İstanbul.
One of the Sledgehammer suspects pending trial, Lt. Gen. Tevfik Özkılıç, made his defense at the 75th hearing of the Sledgehammer case at the İstanbul 10th High Criminal Court on Thursday. During the hearing one of the jailed suspects in the case, Ayhan Taş, asked Özkılıç whether he had sensed the alleged preparations for a coup during the 2003 seminar, which he participated in as an observer. In response Özkılıç said “no,” adding that instead of discussing the official military plan named the “Egemen Action Plan,” a proposal was made to discuss “private matters,” which included a “martial law plan,” a “rear area security plan” and a “state of emergency security plan.”
Özkılıç also noted that he was opposed to the proposal to discuss other issues on the grounds that the subject of a seminar could not be changed three months prior to the seminar.
After the remarks from Özkılıç, retired Gen. Çetin Doğan, a key suspect in the case who is currently under arrest, took to the stand and asserted that he did not demand that the Egemen action plan be completely removed from the seminar.
In response to a question from retired Gen. Recep Rıfkı Durusoy, a jailed suspect in the case, who asked if the Sledgehammer action plan included any actions against the government, Özkılıç said he did not remember and that he did not know if such actions were included.
Doğan had said in a hearing on June 16, 2011 that only the Egemen action plan was discussed at the 2003 seminar.
Another suspect in the case pending trial, Meryem Kurşun, also delivered her defense at Thursday's hearing. She said: “I applied to the military as a sociologist in 2005. I was informed by the military which websites I should follow [anti-government propaganda websites constructed to disseminate propaganda against the government with the intention of overthrowing it with the military], so I didn't have the ability to choose what news to post on the websites. These websites are not my personal websites; I only did what was done by the rest of the officers serving in the information support department of the military.”
The Sledgehammer plot allegedly sought to undermine the government to lay the groundwork for a coup d'état. The military, which has overthrown three governments since 1960 and pressured a conservative government to step down in 1997, has denied that such a plan existed. All suspects are accused of a failed attempt to destroy Parliament and overthrow the government. Such a charge calls for a jail sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
The Cihan news agency reported on Friday that the head of the İstanbul 10th High Criminal Court conducting the trial, Ömer Diken, said that there are still suspects pending trial who did not attend the hearing, although the court ordered district gendarmerie commands to make the suspects available the day before the hearing. In the Sledgehammer case, Article 250 of the Code on Criminal Procedure (CMK) says that a person facing charges that fall under the scope of terrorist activities cannot benefit from any immunity, regardless of his or her rank.
Diken went on to say that the court will take necessary measures for the suspects who did not attend the hearing and the district gendarmerie commands that did not bring these suspects to court on the day of their hearing.
A full 171 suspects are under arrest and 41 who are pending trial attended the 75th hearing of the Sledgehammer case on Thursday. However, 78 of the suspects who are under arrest -- including War Academies Commander Gen. Bilgin Balanlı and former military prosecutor Ahmet Zeki Üçok -- did not attend the hearing. Gen. Levent Ersöz, who is currently in jail as a prime suspect in the investigation of Ergenekon and also pending trial as a suspect in the Sledgehammer case, as well as Col. Dursun Çiçek, who is in jail as part of an anti-government Internet campaign probe and is also pending trial as a suspect in the Sledgehammer case, did not attend the hearing on Thursday.
One of the Sledgehammer suspects pending trial, Lt. Gen. Tevfik Özkılıç, made his defense at the 75th hearing of the Sledgehammer case at the İstanbul 10th High Criminal Court on Thursday. During the hearing one of the jailed suspects in the case, Ayhan Taş, asked Özkılıç whether he had sensed the alleged preparations for a coup during the 2003 seminar, which he participated in as an observer. In response Özkılıç said “no,” adding that instead of discussing the official military plan named the “Egemen Action Plan,” a proposal was made to discuss “private matters,” which included a “martial law plan,” a “rear area security plan” and a “state of emergency security plan.”
Özkılıç also noted that he was opposed to the proposal to discuss other issues on the grounds that the subject of a seminar could not be changed three months prior to the seminar.
After the remarks from Özkılıç, retired Gen. Çetin Doğan, a key suspect in the case who is currently under arrest, took to the stand and asserted that he did not demand that the Egemen action plan be completely removed from the seminar.
In response to a question from retired Gen. Recep Rıfkı Durusoy, a jailed suspect in the case, who asked if the Sledgehammer action plan included any actions against the government, Özkılıç said he did not remember and that he did not know if such actions were included.
Doğan had said in a hearing on June 16, 2011 that only the Egemen action plan was discussed at the 2003 seminar.
Another suspect in the case pending trial, Meryem Kurşun, also delivered her defense at Thursday's hearing. She said: “I applied to the military as a sociologist in 2005. I was informed by the military which websites I should follow [anti-government propaganda websites constructed to disseminate propaganda against the government with the intention of overthrowing it with the military], so I didn't have the ability to choose what news to post on the websites. These websites are not my personal websites; I only did what was done by the rest of the officers serving in the information support department of the military.”
The Sledgehammer plot allegedly sought to undermine the government to lay the groundwork for a coup d'état. The military, which has overthrown three governments since 1960 and pressured a conservative government to step down in 1997, has denied that such a plan existed. All suspects are accused of a failed attempt to destroy Parliament and overthrow the government. Such a charge calls for a jail sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
The Cihan news agency reported on Friday that the head of the İstanbul 10th High Criminal Court conducting the trial, Ömer Diken, said that there are still suspects pending trial who did not attend the hearing, although the court ordered district gendarmerie commands to make the suspects available the day before the hearing. In the Sledgehammer case, Article 250 of the Code on Criminal Procedure (CMK) says that a person facing charges that fall under the scope of terrorist activities cannot benefit from any immunity, regardless of his or her rank.
Diken went on to say that the court will take necessary measures for the suspects who did not attend the hearing and the district gendarmerie commands that did not bring these suspects to court on the day of their hearing.
A full 171 suspects are under arrest and 41 who are pending trial attended the 75th hearing of the Sledgehammer case on Thursday. However, 78 of the suspects who are under arrest -- including War Academies Commander Gen. Bilgin Balanlı and former military prosecutor Ahmet Zeki Üçok -- did not attend the hearing. Gen. Levent Ersöz, who is currently in jail as a prime suspect in the investigation of Ergenekon and also pending trial as a suspect in the Sledgehammer case, as well as Col. Dursun Çiçek, who is in jail as part of an anti-government Internet campaign probe and is also pending trial as a suspect in the Sledgehammer case, did not attend the hearing on Thursday.
European court says Turkey’s Ergenekon arrests legal
Europe's top court has said the arrest of chief Ergenekon defendant Tuncay Özkan is legal, rejecting the plaintiff's complaint that he was deprived of his right to a fair trial.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) accepted Özkan v. Turkey despite the fact that Özkan had not exhausted all domestic judicial remedies, but rejected some of his core complaints, including his claim that he was denied the right to a fair trial and the legality of his arrest.
The ECtHR defined Ergenekon as a “terrorist organization attempting to topple the government by the use of force” and said it will wait until the judicial proceedings of Özkan's case are finished. The European court also rejected Özkan's claim that his right to freedom was violated. His complaint regarding the time he has spent in jail will be assessed later in an interim decision.
The European court also said there is “strong evidence” regarding the existence of the Ergenekon clandestine terrorist organization and rejected Özkan's demand to be tried without arrest. The court said Özkan's trial without arrest would make it difficult for security forces to fight organized crime.
ECtHR sources also told the Cihan news agency that Özkan v. Turkey might set a precedent for other Ergenekon-related complaints. The decision is also the first official assessment of the European court with respect to Ergenekon. Ergenekon is a clandestine network of individuals who appear to be nested within the state hierarchy and who are currently on trial for multiple counts of murder and causing public disorder that ultimately aimed to overthrow the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government.
The court said Özkan was deprived of his freedom for being a member of a terrorist organization aiming to topple a democratically elected government. It also added that Özkan seized many documents that belong to security forces, directed a TV channel that broadcast programs designed by Ergenekon and kept a bomb in his own home.
The European court judges also said there are telephone transcripts of conversations between Özkan and military members of Ergenekon that strengthen the evidence against him and underlined that his arrest is legal. The Strasbourg-based court added that the arrest of Özkan by Turkish judicial authorities is based on “tangible evidence” and “legitimate reasons.”
Özkan, the former owner of the Kanaltürk TV station, was detained in İstanbul in late September 2008 as part of an investigation into Ergenekon. The court said Özkan's arrest is not in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
The European court also rejected Özkan's allegation that he is not aware of what he has been charged with, claiming that İstanbul police informed him that he was under arrest for being a part of a coup plot and that he had been sufficiently informed of the accusations against him so as to be able to defend himself.
The ECtHR defined Ergenekon as a “terrorist organization attempting to topple the government by the use of force” and said it will wait until the judicial proceedings of Özkan's case are finished. The European court also rejected Özkan's claim that his right to freedom was violated. His complaint regarding the time he has spent in jail will be assessed later in an interim decision.
The European court also said there is “strong evidence” regarding the existence of the Ergenekon clandestine terrorist organization and rejected Özkan's demand to be tried without arrest. The court said Özkan's trial without arrest would make it difficult for security forces to fight organized crime.
ECtHR sources also told the Cihan news agency that Özkan v. Turkey might set a precedent for other Ergenekon-related complaints. The decision is also the first official assessment of the European court with respect to Ergenekon. Ergenekon is a clandestine network of individuals who appear to be nested within the state hierarchy and who are currently on trial for multiple counts of murder and causing public disorder that ultimately aimed to overthrow the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government.
The court said Özkan was deprived of his freedom for being a member of a terrorist organization aiming to topple a democratically elected government. It also added that Özkan seized many documents that belong to security forces, directed a TV channel that broadcast programs designed by Ergenekon and kept a bomb in his own home.
The European court judges also said there are telephone transcripts of conversations between Özkan and military members of Ergenekon that strengthen the evidence against him and underlined that his arrest is legal. The Strasbourg-based court added that the arrest of Özkan by Turkish judicial authorities is based on “tangible evidence” and “legitimate reasons.”
Özkan, the former owner of the Kanaltürk TV station, was detained in İstanbul in late September 2008 as part of an investigation into Ergenekon. The court said Özkan's arrest is not in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
The European court also rejected Özkan's allegation that he is not aware of what he has been charged with, claiming that İstanbul police informed him that he was under arrest for being a part of a coup plot and that he had been sufficiently informed of the accusations against him so as to be able to defend himself.
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