Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
10ANKARA290
2010-02-23 11:20:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ankara
Cable title:
PROSECUTOR'S ARREST REIGNITES BITTER CLASH BETWEEN
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 000290
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT ALSO FOR EUR/SE
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/22/2020
TAGS: PGOV TU
SUBJECT: PROSECUTOR'S ARREST REIGNITES BITTER CLASH BETWEEN
AKP AND JUDICIARY
REF: A. 09 ANKARA 834
B. 09 ANKARA 721
ANKARA 00000290 001.2 OF 002
Classified By: POL Counselor Daniel O'Grady, for reasons 1.4(b,d)
ZFR.....ZFR......ZFR
PLEASE CANCEL ALL SECTIONS
WAS PREVIOUSLY SENT AS ANKARA 288
ANKARA 00000290 002 OF 002
be transferred to himself, claiming it fell under his
jurisdiction as a Special Prosecutor investigating violent
crimes involving weapons. Sanal claimed that Cihaner was
investigating the Ismailaga brotherhood under instructions
from the Ergenekon criminal organization. Citing a now
public document allegedly signed by Col. Dursun Cicek, Sanal
claimed that Ergenekon members were attempting to link the
Is=QQSF|ADy~Qarly election." AKP Deputy Secretary General Safi told us
last week that both the Erzincan and Erzurum prosecutors may
have exceeded their authority, but that HSYK itself is
aligned with opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal. Safi noted
that another closure case may result "because everyone knows
the judiciary is eager to open a case even if it's bad for
the country." But Safi did not appear worried. "Our approval
ratings are around 40-42 percent right now, so we are not
afraid of elections," he said. "We always poll lower than our
election results."
7. (C) COMMENT: Opening a new closure case would be an
unwise move by hard-line secularist critics of the AKP in the
judiciary, since it would allow the AKP to portray itself,
again, as the victim of an undemocratic "deep state" which is
disinterested in the aspirations of non-elite Turks. Still,
it remains a possibility, not least because the AKP's
opponents find themselves on the defensive on so many other
fronts. The judiciary is widely seen as the last bastion of
protection against the AKP's relentless advance. It is also,
according to our contacts, a far more formidable opponent for
the AKP than, say, the Turkish military, because the
judiciary can claim the mantle of "the law" -- even though
all Turkish laws are subject to widely varying and often
political interpretations. The AKP's fixation on the
Ergenekon organization -- whether the organization is real or
fictitious -- has turned into a double-edged politi#QOn5o~QTQ
jmk "Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.s
gov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turkey"
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT ALSO FOR EUR/SE
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/22/2020
TAGS: PGOV TU
SUBJECT: PROSECUTOR'S ARREST REIGNITES BITTER CLASH BETWEEN
AKP AND JUDICIARY
REF: A. 09 ANKARA 834
B. 09 ANKARA 721
ANKARA 00000290 001.2 OF 002
Classified By: POL Counselor Daniel O'Grady, for reasons 1.4(b,d)
ZFR.....ZFR......ZFR
PLEASE CANCEL ALL SECTIONS
WAS PREVIOUSLY SENT AS ANKARA 288
ANKARA 00000290 002 OF 002
be transferred to himself, claiming it fell under his
jurisdiction as a Special Prosecutor investigating violent
crimes involving weapons. Sanal claimed that Cihaner was
investigating the Ismailaga brotherhood under instructions
from the Ergenekon criminal organization. Citing a now
public document allegedly signed by Col. Dursun Cicek, Sanal
claimed that Ergenekon members were attempting to link the
Is=QQSF|ADy~Qarly election." AKP Deputy Secretary General Safi told us
last week that both the Erzincan and Erzurum prosecutors may
have exceeded their authority, but that HSYK itself is
aligned with opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal. Safi noted
that another closure case may result "because everyone knows
the judiciary is eager to open a case even if it's bad for
the country." But Safi did not appear worried. "Our approval
ratings are around 40-42 percent right now, so we are not
afraid of elections," he said. "We always poll lower than our
election results."
7. (C) COMMENT: Opening a new closure case would be an
unwise move by hard-line secularist critics of the AKP in the
judiciary, since it would allow the AKP to portray itself,
again, as the victim of an undemocratic "deep state" which is
disinterested in the aspirations of non-elite Turks. Still,
it remains a possibility, not least because the AKP's
opponents find themselves on the defensive on so many other
fronts. The judiciary is widely seen as the last bastion of
protection against the AKP's relentless advance. It is also,
according to our contacts, a far more formidable opponent for
the AKP than, say, the Turkish military, because the
judiciary can claim the mantle of "the law" -- even though
all Turkish laws are subject to widely varying and often
political interpretations. The AKP's fixation on the
Ergenekon organization -- whether the organization is real or
fictitious -- has turned into a double-edged politi#QOn5o~QTQ
jmk "Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.s
gov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turkey"