Breaking the grip of Turkey's military

[Pete]

Breaking the grip of Turkey's military

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisf...ilitary-turkey

"Thirty years to the day after Turkish generals seized power in a coup that shattered civil society and resulted in the death and torture of thousands, voters will go to the polls to vote on amendments to the anti-democratic constitution the generals imposed before leaving................."

Many like to hold up Turkey as the great example of the secular Islamic State. We've had many posts here over the years about Turkey's slow march into the Islamist's camp.

About 4 years ago the propaganda campaign against the Military and it's leaders began. We now see the fruit of it's actions.

The "anti-democratic constitution" will be changed. Changed to what?

[Ret10Echo]

Originally Posted by Pete

The "anti-democratic constitution" will be changed. Changed to what?

Based upon Turkey's leanings of late. I can take a guess here....

[akv]

This should be interesting, women have voted in Turkey since 1930, unlike Afghanistan where violent fundamentalists took over, why would women there vote themselves back into servitude? The folks I met in Istanbul considered themselves European, were proud of their secular state, and looked down on what they called "tent Islam".

[Pete]

Turkey Referendum to Be Closely Watched

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...googlenews_wsj

"........Mr. Erdogan says the reforms are necessary to bring Turkey closer in line with the EU, while opposition parties charge that the moves to give parliament control over top judicial appointments are a smoke screen for undermining Turkey's secular state. ..............."

As has been noted before the current government has spent the last few years replace most heads of government departments with non-secularists.

Folks, the process is not fast. It doesn't happen overnight. It is a slow process that takes years. This vote Sunday has been 7 years in the making. Looks to be a coin flip right now.

Edited to add a link to a 2007 story about the Army.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6602375.stm

It goes a long way to explain the assault by the government on the Military leadership since 2007. The leadership has been replaced with more "dependable" generals.

[Pete]

Turkey votes 'yes' to amending military-era constitution

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle1704259/

"........The military and the court system, including the Constitutional Court, have sought to uphold the secular legacy of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who founded Turkey in 1923, and the ruling Justice and Development Party has been accused of plotting to undo those principles.

The ruling party, whose reforms have won backing from the EU, says the hard-line emphasis on secularism and nationalism must be updated to incorporate democratic change, including religious freedoms. It lost a battle in 2008 when the Constitutional Court struck down a government-backed amendment lifting a ban on the wearing of Muslim headscarves in universities. ................"

Nothing ever happens overnight. It's a slow process. Take a few years to pack the courts with reliable judges. And the EU approves.

[drymartini66]

Originally Posted by Pete

Turkey votes 'yes' to amending military-era constitution

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle1704259/

"........The military and the court system, including the Constitutional Court, have sought to uphold the secular legacy of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who founded Turkey in 1923, and the ruling Justice and Development Party has been accused of plotting to undo those principles.

The ruling party, whose reforms have won backing from the EU, says the hard-line emphasis on secularism and nationalism must be updated to incorporate democratic change, including religious freedoms. It lost a battle in 2008 when the Constitutional Court struck down a government-backed amendment lifting a ban on the wearing of Muslim headscarves in universities. ................"

Nothing ever happens overnight. It's a slow process. Take a few years to pack the courts with reliable judges. And the EU approves.

Turkey is ever so slowly reverting back to it's roots of the Ottoman Empire. It raises eyebrows to see how they are gaining influence or putting fingers in pies so to speak throughout the Middle East. Their latest sojorn into the Israeli/Palestinian conflict with the backing of terrorist blockade runners is troubling. They truly need to be watched.