TURKEY: MARTIAL LAW AND CENSORSHIP

Turkey was one of the first countries to receive aid from the United war "Truman Doctrine', designed to save the world from communism'.

She is now a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the Council of Europe and an, associate member of the Common Market. She has 600,000 men under arms.

In 1960 the Turkish army overthrew the government of Adnan Menderes. With 14 members of his government he was hauled before a speciallyconstituted High Court of Justice and charged with personal corruption and 'subverting the constitution'.

All 15 defendants were found guilty, and on September 17, the Prime Minister and two others were executed.

The armed services chiefs had formed a National Unity Committee which, after Menderes' overthrow, set up a National Security Council.

This Council has held effective power ever since.

From 1961 to 1965 Turkey was governed by a coalition government, headed by Ismet Inonu, replaced in 1965 by a Justice Party government under Süleyman Demirel.

In March 1971, the army again moved in, forcing the resignation the Demirel government putting a gov- and ernment of own choice in its its place.

The closing months of Demirel's government had been characterized by industrialeconomic conflict and by mounting disorders amongst university students throughout the country.

Demirel himself was in a weak position, His parliamentary majority had been reduced to two the previous December by the defection of a rightwing group of his own party.

Consequently when the student unrest culminated in a programme of planned leftwing anti-government and antiUS demonstrations the government was unable to quell them. The Prime Minister introduced draft legislation to strengthen governmental power, but while parliament was still debating this, students in Ankara kidnapped four US airforce men.

In his drive to restore 'law and order' and crush the TPLA, Erim's government introduced a series of measures. In April 1971 martial law was imposed on I1 of the country's 66 provinces, including all university towns and the Kurdish provinces of east Anatolia.

Martial law is still in force today. It provides for military trials, detention without charge or trial for up to 30 days, house-to-house searches and the imposing of curfews.

Widespread arrests followed throughout the summer and autumn of 1971, involving hundreds of people whom the government declared had been guilty by their attitude of 'helping to spread an atmosphere conducive to the present state of anarchy'. Although some of these people were released after interrogation, others have been tried on charges of disseminating communist propaganda, and others are involved in mass military trials now taking place.

The pro-Moscow Turkish Worker's Party has been banned and its members arraigned on charges of communist propaganda; most of the left-wing Press has gone out of print or subjected itself to rigorous self-censorship and the Turkish radio and television association put under the control of an ex-General.

In November 1971 parliament unanimously approved a Bill strengthening approximately one-third of the clauses of the 1961 constitution. In February 1972 a Bill was introduced to limit the rights of association and, particularly, to prevent student organizations from involving themselves in politics.

For five weeks after Erim's resignation, Turkey was without a recognized government. Eventually on May 22, 1972 Mr Ferit Melen-the former Defence Minister and a representative of the small National Reliance Party-managed to form a Cabinet. His government consists of representatives from both major parties together with a number of 'non-party' political technocrats.

Melen himself is a strong anti-communist, who concentrates on strict 'law-and-order' legislation designed to crush all left-wing or terrorist opposition. Its main task is to prepare the country for the elections scheduled for October 1973.

The two main political parties in Turkey today are the Justice Party (JP) and the Republican People's Party (RPP).

The Justice Party is headed by Süleyman Demirel and was power until the military ultimatum of March 1971. The JP is the virtual descendant of Menderes' banned Democratic Party (although it is a criminal oftence to say so in lurkey), stands for private enterprise and enjoys support among the landowners in the country and among the small-town industrialists and entrepreneurs in the towns. In the elections of 1965 and 1969 the JP gained over 50 per cent of the vote.

The Republican People's Party was founded by Kemal Ataturk and headed, until May 1972, by his 88-year-old friend and colleague, Ismet Inonu. In the last two elections it gained a bare 30 per cent of the votes. Support for the RPP comes from the urban educated élite, which in Turkey includes army officers.

Close control by the army Communism or support for a Communist Party is illegal in Turkey. The Workers, Pro-Moscow Turkish Party -banned since March 1971-was seriously split over the Russian invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968.

The army maintains a close control over. political affairs, although usually avoiding a total open military takeover.

Strict repression is waged against left-wing dissension in its ranks. Eighty-three officers and men of the Istanbul garrison now face trial on harges of alleged complicity activities of the TPLA.

After the overthrow of the Menderes regime in 1960-1961, freedom of the Press and of publication was 'guaranteed' by the constitution. Article 11 specifically stated that this freedom could not be limited by the law, 'even when applied for the purpose of upholding public interest, morals and order, social justice and national security'.

Journalists could, however, be prosecuted for defamation of the state and for communist propaganda under Articles 158/9 and 141/2 of the Penal Code; and for criticizing the 1960 military intervention or suggesting that Turkey would not thrive as a democracy under the 1962 Law of Measures.

The Press has been one of the main victims of military repression since March 1971. In martial law areas a number of journals and newspapers have been suspended or closed entirely and their editors and staff arrested.

The financial losses incurred and the fear of imprisonment encouraged newspaper owners and editors to adhere closely to the official guidelines laid down by the authorities.

These advise the Press to refrain from criticism of the government, state authorities and security forces; from open discussion of the March 1971 ultimatum; and from publishing material which might seem to praise subversive elements or lead to disorder.

Given such a broad definition, editors in practice tend to exercise careful self-censorship and, when in doubt about an article, to seek the advice of the authorities.

Radio and television face more direct censorship. The association has been put under the control of an ex-General and an army colonel is now responsible for scrutinizing news bulletins before they are broadcast.

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