TURKEY tr-national
Koşaner comments on leaked recordings
ANKARA | 8/28/2011 12:00:00 AM |
Former Chief of General Staff Gen. Işık Koşaner broke his silence on the leaked recordings of a military meeting, confirming that the voice belonged to him, and stood behind his commentary on the military’s deficiencies and the relationship between the government and the military.
Former Chief of General Staff Gen. Işık Koşaner broke his silence on the leaked recordings of a military meeting, confirming that the voice belonged to him, and stood behind his commentary on the military’s deficiencies and the relationship between the government and the military.
“These are not subjects that we hide from anyone,” said Koşaner in a written statement, revealing that he had passed along his thoughts to the government and had taken legal action to solve the issues.
The recordings were made while he was serving as the chief of General Staff, with the audio obtained from meetings conducted during his visits to various units, said Koşaner.
On the recording released Tuesday, Koşaner is heard speaking very frankly about the military’s deficiencies in organization, saying the shortcomings contribute negatively to the fight against terror. Koşaner is also heard commenting on incidents affecting the relationship between the military and the government, such as the “Balyoz” (Sledgehammer) coup-plot investigation.
The meetings, according to Koşaner, were not “confessions,” but rather “self-criticism” to warn and motivate his men, said Koşaner in the written statement, adding that these issues were talked about within the Turkish Armed Forces in an effort to “learn from mistakes.”
Some of the content leaning toward marginalization has been dramatized by the press, said Koşaner. “These sincere and sometimes hurtful self-criticisms are a virtue. And recording these meetings taking place within the institution is immoral and unlawful. “I stand behind my statements, down to every punctuation mark. However, it saddens me that my words have been skewed when reflected to the public. I will not take part in this non-ethical and legal debate. My statements were within the laws, despite claims to the contrary.”
Koşaner gave specific examples of the misrepresentation of his words. “I never said the Sledgehammer documents were stolen. I said they had been destroyed. But the press reported it as us saying we destroyed the documents so we had to find out the details from the indictment. How can a plan, which hasn’t even been proven yet, be destroyed? I was referring to documents related to the planning seminar. That is unrelated to the Sledgehammer case.”
Former Chief of Staff Gen. Işık Koşaner's written statement
“Lots of news and commentaries appeared in various media sources following the release of my sound recordings on a foreign website. That some of these news and commentaries were targeting the Turkish Armed Forces, to whom I owe my entire being and whom I love more than anything else, directly through my person, the aim of influencing the judiciary by attempting to connect [the recordings with] certain trials currently underway, and the quality [of these commentaries and news] that are damaging to the souls of our beloved martyrs who sacrificed their lives for this sacred country, as well as the consciences of their acquintances, have forced me to provide an explanation.”
“Throughout my term of service, I paid visits to various units at times of intensified attacks against the Turkish Armed Forces, and I made the statements part of which appeared in the sound recordings. These speeches did not constitute a ‘confession’ as some conscientious writers have also indicated, but were self – criticisms that were aimed at highlighting certain issues that I thought were important regarding the future of the Turkish Armed Forces and [were intended] to warn and motivate them not to commit any mistakes at a very sensitive time.”
“The subjects mentioned [in the recordings] are the results of efforts to draw lessons from mistakes that were already being discussed and criticized within the institution. All the subjects that were raised were issues which I also shared with high ranking state officials in relevant councils and about which I had given orders for the necessary legal [measures to be taken.] These are not issues which we are hiding or concealing from anyone.”
“The style which sometimes grew more marginal in the statements was a product of efforts to draw the listeners’ attention by dramatizing certain parts. These are the sections which were exaggerated and exploited by certain elements of the media. It should not be forgotten that sincere and modest self – criticism that may hurt [the listener] when the situation calls for it constitutes a ‘virtue.’ To record and publish without permission such self – criticism that is made by a person, or even within an institution, however, is unethical and unlawful.”
“I entirely stand by these statements today just as I did before. My sadness, however, [emanates from] the distorted presentation of my speeches before the public and the [attempts] to draw my person into an unethical and unlawful debate due to the decision I have made. I will not let myself be used [in this way.] Contrary to [certain] claims, there was not a single sentence in the statements which was extrajudicial or against the law. There could be some metaphorisms that may have gone beyond their purpose in a critical sense; and as such, statements regarding journalists might be interpreted within this framework. But the purpose of these sarcastic remarks was to draw the listeners’ attention to the role of the media in these circumstances that are proceeding against the Turkish Armed Forces. These statements were absolutely not uttered with the aim of ‘insulting.’”
“The purpose behind the sentence ‘We need no directives from anyone’ was not [to foment] an uprising against civilian authority, but to warn unit commanders against those pursing a campaign asking why the Turkish Armed Forces are launching operations against the separatist terror organization, and to remind [unit commanders] of their legal rights. Otherwise, it is self evident according to which laws and methods the struggle against terrorism is waged.”
“Statements [in the recording] about a trial that is currently underway were also presented to the public in a distorted way. The clear and plain statement in the sound recordings that ‘We could not find anything when the incident surfaced because all documents about the seminary were destroyed’ was presented in some media sources as ‘We learned of everything through the bill of indictment since we destroyed all documentation about the Sledgehammer [case.]’ It is counterintuitive to talk about the destruction of a plan whose existence yet remains to be proven. The statement about ‘Sledgehammer [trial] documents getting to be stolen’ absolutely does not exist in the sound recordings. What was being talked about was the sound recordings pertaining to the plan seminary that was being executed around that time and certain information and documents. It should not be forgotten that the plan seminary and issues pertaining to the trial currently underway are different subjects.”
“Finally, my greatest [source of] sadness is the exploitation of our martyrs whom I have always held in high regard and whose pain I have always felt close to my heart, as well as [the exploitation of] their worthy and aggrieved families in this manner. Our families must be certain that every incident involving death in the Turkish Armed Forces is definitely investigated by the military prosecution, and if necessary, a lawsuit is filed about those responsible. What is truly vexing here is [the attempt] to associate these statements with one of our troops whose act of suicide was confirmed by means of a judicial decision. With all due respect to the public.”