Don’t mock with Turkey’s security concerns: Erdoğan

ERZURUM

Turkey has been exposed to multi-pronged attacks as no other period, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Feb. 28 criticizing those who mocks the security concerns expressed by the government.

“Some are mocking when we talk about Turkey’s security issue now. However, every coup, coup attempts were matter of security in the history of this country,” Erdoğan said speaking at a rally in Turkey’s eastern province of Erzurum.

“Turkey’s coups, juntas, tutelage of this dark page show us that we need to embrace our independence and future more tightly,” he said.

If this problem was addressed properly, realities were illuminated and discussed sufficiently at the time of these coups, maybe further pain would be abstained he said.

Therefore his government tries to tell people about the details of this era Turkey has been passing through with all its dimensions, the president said.

“In the past six years, Turkey has been exposed to many multi-pronged attacks more than ever before. None of these was a coincidence.” he said.

The period Erdoğan was referring goes to the Gezi Park protests, anti-government protests that shook Turkey in 2013.

Turkey also faced a failed coup attempt in July 15, 2016. FETÖ and its U.S.-based leader Fethullah Gülen are believed to orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people killed and nearly 2,200 injured.

They will never allow separation of Turkey by Kurdish separatists, he said noting that if anyone has such a desire that should go to northern Iraq.

Recalling that today is Feb. 28, the anniversary of so-called “post-modern coup,” which is known as “Feb. 28,” Erdoğan said it was the “shame day on behalf of our democracy.”

He recalled that female students wearing headscarves were not allowed to enter the universities the time. Erdoğan blamed the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) for those days. “It is the CHP mindset,” he said adding that one of the rectors that questioned those students was then elected as a CHP lawmaker.

He accused the CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu of being “putchist” because he did not address to the crowds in Istanbul Atatürk Airport on the night of June 15 coup attempt but went to nearby Bakırköy Municipality instead.