Simplistic comments on the coup attempt

The coup attempt in Turkey has been largely relayed in the foreign media, and some journalists have qualified it as the revenge of a group within the military, a group that the government was trying to eliminate. When you put it like this, it seems you are talking about two equally legitimate players who are struggling with one and other. The foreign press often makes the mistake when talking about the fight between the PKK and the Turkish Armed Forces, too.

It is understandable that some foreign media outlets or countries dislike the current government. In Turkey, too, a lot of people disagree with it. But to like or dislike the government is one thing, to forget that it is a legitimate and elected institution is another.

One may claim that the Turkish political system is not completely democratic, transparent or that the rule of law is not fully implemented. But despite it all, Turkey is a democracy. The one thing that proves Turkish democracy is not perfect is that there are still people who think and want to overthrow the government through a military coup.

It is a crime, everywhere in the world, to try to kill a country's president and prime minister. However, there are some people around the world who think that what is happening in Turkey is like a skirmish between two African tribes.

A number of foreign media outlets announced in the early hours of the coup attempt that the government had already been toppled, without verifying it. They probably thought that given the coups in Turkey's history, this attempt was bound to be successful. They probably forgot that in the past the Turkish people had been perfectly prepared for the coups through civil unrest, political instability and mass killings.

Such a political climate does not exist in today's Turkey. There is of course a terror problem - DAESH, like in many parts of the world, and the PKK. It is also true that there is political polarization in society.

It is true, once again, that the government is fighting against a group that wants to weaken the governing party and the president by every means available. But this fight is happening in high political and bureaucratic circles and it does not affect ordinary people on the streets. In other words, one cannot say there exists a socio-political and economic atmosphere in Turkey that would justify, in the eyes of the anonymous masses, a military coup.

Turkish society has experienced many coups and their consequences. That is why it would not support another coup attempt. Maybe foreign commentators should better study social behavior in Turkey. Maybe they should also take into consideration that Turkey has changed a lot compared to last few decades. When you do not have this background information, it is easy to believe that a bunch of soldiers who block the Bosporus Bridge will be enough to overthrow the government.

Let us hope that in the future, when analyzing Turkey, foreigners will not just look at the government or the president, but also at different segments of society. Let us not forget that not only did the people elect the current governing party last November, but the same people preferred to convey a different message in the previous elections that took place in June 2015. It would be a mistake to believe that people will support the government or the president no matter what. The moment they believe they are following the wrong path, they know how to punish those leading them there.

There are lessons in what has happened in the last couple of days. The syllabus of this lesson is full of references to more democracy.