No Conviction Yet in Alleged Military Coup, Says Turkey’s Chief of General Staff

The prosecution of an alleged military coup has not yet ended, Chief of General Staff Gen. İlker Başbuğ said in an interview published Sunday with daily Milliyet, reports Hürriyet Daily News and Economic Review.

“We shouldn’t forget that the investigation has yet to end. And the military prosecutor has the only authority,” Başbuğ said, emphasizing that Col. Dursun Çiçek has yet to be convicted by the court.

Çiçek has been accused of drafting an alleged military plan to discredit the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, and its supporters in the religious Gülen movement.

In a recent statement on its website, the military said the court had evidence confirming that the coup document sent to the court Feb. 16 and allegedly signed by Çiçek, known as the “Action Plan to Fight Fundamentalism,” was the original copy. A military prosecutor requested an arrest warrant for the colonel, but the court rejected the request. Çiçek has denied the claims.

Başbuğ last year called the controversial photocopy a “piece of paper” with no legality. In the recent interview, he repeated, “I stand behind what I said earlier.”

“What else could I say? It was only a photocopy, and it would be illegal to consider it as evidence. After receiving the original document [in February 2010], we re-launched the investigation as I promised earlier,” he said.

“In Turkey, the essence of the subject has not been understood nor analyzed correctly,” he added. “It is quite different to comment upon hearsay claims. That’s our failure.”

When asked whether some high-ranking commanders will resign, as has been speculated, Başbuğ replied: “No, it is absolutely beyond concern. We have not discussed or stated such an issue. I have no doubt the judiciary will enlighten on the issue.”