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PREFACE
Turkey today is a huge concentration camp in the south-eastern part of Europe. In spite of the existence of a so-called parliament, all the political and administrative power has been in the hands of the military authorities since the Ultimatum of March 12, 1971. The advisory body of high-ranking generals, the National Security Council, became the real ruler of the country. It can overthrow or refuse any government formed by the parliament and abolish all constitutional rights and freedoms by compelling the parliament to amend the Constitution and to legislate anti-democratic laws.
Under the pretext of establishing 'Jlaw and order", the military- backed government imposed Martial Law on April 26, 1971. Since that time:
1. All the democratic mass organizations have been banned by the military authorities, without any court decision.
2. Thousands of people, including intellectuals, writers, journalists, publishers, teachers, university professors, workers, peasants and student leaders, have been detained or arrested by the Martial Law authorities without any court warrant. During the "manhunt” more than thirty persons have been murdered by the "security” forces or rightist bands.
3. All progressive publications have been prohibited, tens of thousands of books were confiscated, all daily newspapers were compelled bo change their policy and turned into propaganda media for the military rule. The autonomy of the state radio-television was completely abolished by changing the Constitution. An army general was appointed as its general director, and the state radio-television became the "voice of generals".
4 All strikes, trade-union meetings and collective bargaining have been forbidden without any court decision, and mapy trade-union leaders and workers have been arrested.
5. The teacher’s unions have been banned, hundreds of teachers and university professors arrested and are being tried by the military courts of martial law. The autonomy of the universities has been abolished by changing the Constitution.
6. Since the proclamation of Martial Law, the oppression of the Kurdish people in Eastern Anatolia is at its maximum. Today it is even forbidden to mention the existence of the Kurdish people. The Turkish Labour Party (TIP) and the Cultural Organization of Eastern Anatolia (DDKO) were banned and their leaders are still under arrest and are judged by the military courts of martial law, because they have talked of the existence of this people and defended their right to speak their own language.
7. Eleven extraordinary military courts attached to the six Martial Law commanders act without any consideration to the Constitution, the international human rights treaties and the basic principles of law. These courts, presided over by army officers and composed of military judges, are trying thousands of people and imposing death sentences or imprisonment.
8. Three young students, Deniz Gezmi§, Yusuf Aslan and Huseyin Inan were sentenced to death. In spite of great wave of protests and many appeals from democratic governments and international organizations the military rule did not take these reactions into consideration and executed the death sentences. And tens of young persons are still being tried, threatened with capital punishment. One of the military court refused to apply such a punishment in spite of the military prosecutor’s demand, and this court, the First Military Court of Istanbul Martial Law Headquarters, was immediately dissolved.
9. All kinds of torture are applied brutally. In such important political trials, the military prosecutors bring "confessions" obtained by torture as the main evidence and the military judges condemn the victims on the ba.sis of such proof. It is well known that political prisoners are, tortured as a matter of policy under Turkey's military rule.
But the military rule has not been satisfied even by the "sledgehammer operation" undertaken by Erim’s governments and appointed a well-known FfcCarthyist, Ferit Melen, as prime minister. One of his first decisions was to charge one of the state ministries with the task of "fighting against communism". Since this appointment, the man-hunt operation has worsened day by day. Detainees and prisoners are deprived of seeing their lawyers and families. They are kept in strict isolation and also being brutally tortured.
This volume is a summary of all the reports issued by the Democratic Resistance of Turkey, and is designed to fill the need of world opinion who needs a convenient compilation of basic facts about the current military rule in Turkey.
The Democratic Resistance of Turkey is a movement which includes the anti-fascist forces of Turkey. It aims:
1. To prevent death sentences, tortures and ill-treatments;
2. To free all political prisoners;
3. To put an end to the Martial Law;
4. To restore the Constitution of 1961 and to annul all antidemocratic laws passed after March 12, 1971;
5. To liquidate the hegemony of the United States and its collaborators, who impose and hack the "parliamentary" and military fascisij in Turkey.
In this volume, the emphasis is on the objective descriptions of the economic, social and political sources of this fascist rule, its staff, the role of the so-called "parliament"; the oppression of the working class, the intellectuals, the press, teachers, university professors, youth and peasantry; the man-hunts, the mass arrests, the tortures and the illegitimate trials by the military courts.
This report seeks to~ present the facts as fully as the limitations on space and research time will permit. It has been compiled from information available in openly published material, written and signed statements, court decisions and official communiques of the Martial Law authorities.
An effort has been made to make the volume as comprehensive as possible. But it has been necessary to mention the concrete pressures to which the working class, the intellectuals and teachers were subjected since 1965, the year the Justice Party (AP) came to power. Because the infraction of the Constitution, the oppression of the democratic forces were started by the Justice Party (AP), representing the interests of the United States and the ruling circles. The more the repressions increased, the more the resistance of the democratic forces and of the masses was strengthened; and it was because the AP was unable to overcome the resistance and to change the democratic Constitution that the military rule was imposed on March 12, 1971* The military coup d’etat is the second stage of the fascist course which had already started under the mask of "parliamentary government" in 1965. It is even possible that after liquidating all democratic forces and principal rights and freedoms the military-backed government may organize a so-called "election" and bring the Justice Party to power again. In order not to be deceived, world opinion should know of the murders and crimes committed during the Justice Party’s previous term in power. Even if the Justice Party were to come to power again, the real power would still be in the hands of the National Security Council and tho veiled military rule will continue in a so-called "democratic" life without constitutional guarantees and institutions, without left-wing parties, without a free press.
Although their chauvinistic and religious ideologies make them proud of their Central Asian origin and moslem traditions the military authorities of Turkey nevertheless, identify themselves with the West, as demonstrated by their full status in the European Council and their associated membership in the European Economic Community (EEC).
Turkey is also a member of the United Nations.
The Human Rights Convention of the United Nations and the European Council, signed by Turkey, expressly forbids the violation of democratic rights and the application of torture.
But as our readers will see, the present military rule of Turkey has violated these Human Rights Conventions in spite of the many criticisms and the warnings of democratic forces.
Besides this volume, a detailed list of the victims detained or arrested since the beginning of the Martial Luk is being issued separately by the Democratic Resistance of Turkey and will be presented to the appropriate international bodies.
It is shameful that the United Nations and the European Council continue to keep such a regime in their membership.
The Democratic Resistance of Turkey calls on the democratic forces of the world, especially the Human Rights Commissions of the United Nations and the European Council to immediately address themselves to this worsening situation and to investigate the facts mentioned in the present volume.
Democratic Resistance of Turkey
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COUNTRY SUMMARY
1. COUNTRY: - Republic of Turkey. Title adopted in 1923 after the former name Ottoman Empire, was abolished.
2.SIZE: Area, 300.600 square mile; 9.800 square mile in Europe and 290.800 square mile in Asia. Greatest north-south distance 395 mile; greatest east-west distance, about 950 miles.
3.TOPOGRAPHY: Five natural regions: the Aegean Coastlands, denseley populated plateau in European Turkey; the Black Sea Region, steep and rocky coast covered with lush vegetation; Mediterranean Coastlands, plains rich in agricultural resources; Central Plateau, arid grazing area; and Eastern Highlands, rugged country with severe climate.
U. Climate: Contrasting climates: warm, temperate Mediterranean; cold, rainy Caucasus, desert and steppe running from the Sahara to Central Asia.
5. Population: About 37 million; annual growth rate, 2.6%. Density about 110 per square mile; approximately Uo % of the total population live in urban area. Major peoples of Turkey are Turks, Kurds and Arabs. Non-Moslem minorities, including Greeks, Armenians and Jews, for 1% of the total population. Approximately 700 thousand persons have migrated to the developed European countries as workers.
6. LANGUAGES: Official language, Turkish, spoken by 90% of the population. Other principal languages: Kurdish, Arabic, Greek, Armenian, Caucasian, Ladino and Yiddish.
7. RELIGION: No official religion, but 98%of the population are Moslem. Other religions include Judaism and Christianity.
8. EDUCATION: Literacy rate, U8% in 1965- Only 73% of primary-age students have schools to attend, and many of these are schools in which one teacher must handle several classes on different levels. 13 thousand villages have no schools. Lesb than 20% of Turkish students can expect to reach first-cycle secondary education (junior high), some 8% of these reach second-cycle secondary education (lyc6e), and about 6% of these attain higher education.
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