Presidential Chief Advisor and Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Legal Policies Council Mehmet Uçum evaluated the latest stage of the transition to a Terror-Free Turkey in an article he wrote for AA Analysis.
Elements of the transition process
Uçum stated that, as he noted in his previous article, the completion of the transition process requires ending active terrorist practice, eliminating practices that support terrorism, ending the language established under the shadow of terrorism, and terminating the terrorist tutelage over democratic political actors.
He also touched on the importance of completely eliminating the problem of "illegitimate and condescending cadre tutelage" established over some democratic political structures through old or new-style illegal formations. He noted that the process would be largely completed with steps to be taken regarding the judicial proceedings of members of the dissolved organization and their integration into society.
Expectation of a transition process law from the TBMM
Uçum stressed that one of the most important steps of the process is the enactment of the transition process law. Reminding that President Erdoğan had stated the law must be passed before the TBMM goes into recess, Uçum said a strong will has formed on this issue. He pointed out that in no previous process has the issue reached this level of being on the TBMM agenda and at the legislative stage.
Traps and sabotage attempts against the process
Mehmet Uçum claimed that some elements of the dissolved terrorist organization intend to harm the process with their recent statements and attitudes. He said that those producing unrealistic war scenarios about the region, those trying to oppose the process with a condescending tone, and those seeking to overshadow the process with absurd demands have been exposed.
Uçum stated that anti-Turkey circles at home and abroad, as well as various outlets that are instruments of imperialism, are provoking and encouraging sabotage attempts against the transition process, and that among these are Westernist circles posing as opposition from all sides and political actors exploiting nationalism.
Describing the statements based on false claims made by some elements of the dissolved terrorist organization against MIT Director İbrahim Kalın's visit to Iraq as a provocative move, Uçum stressed that the visit was made to contribute to the goals of a Terror-Free Turkey and a Terror-Free Region, and that associating a peace visit with war is unacceptable.
Uçum said the state is aware of all these attempts and is preparing possible measures, adding that those who try to sabotage will be crushed by it.
The distinction between dialogue and negotiation
Uçum stated that those who attempt to exploit the dialogue process conducted with Öcalan, connected elements, and relevant legal structures will sooner or later be held accountable. He said that those trying to turn the dialogue process into a negotiation for Turkey's future are not sincere and that the real intention is to harm the process.
Uçum stated that portraying the transition to a Terror-Free Turkey as the liquidation of the "democracy and freedom movement" is a politics of deception, and on the contrary, the elimination of systematic terrorism will ensure the legitimization, legalization, and strengthening of the democracy and freedom movement. He stressed that the primary function of the transition process law is to create the appropriate legal conditions for this.
Uçum clearly stated that the dialogue is contact conducted with terrorism-related interlocutors and connected legal structures for the definitive and permanent elimination of terrorism, not a negotiation. He defined negotiation as a style of politics in which all segments of Turkish society are involved on the ground of democratic politics to develop democracy and freedoms.
The vision of a Terror-Free Turkey
Uçum stated that the vision of a Terror-Free Turkey is to strengthen the integration of Kurds with the state and the nation domestically and to stand by all Kurds in the region, and that the fact that Turkey has been the country that has most stood by the Kurds in Syria and most recently in the US/Israel-Iran war is the most concrete indication of this.
Uçum stressed that the steps to be taken after the law should not be prolonged and that the dissolved organization must quickly fulfill its responsibilities, including completing the laying down of arms, and stated that the state is ready for this with its strong will at all levels and its full institutional capacity.
Uçum said that those who see the phased nature of the process and act in harmony with the dynamics of these necessary phases will win, while those who resist will lose, and added: "The transition process to a Terror-Free Turkey has now crossed an irreversible threshold. The main issue from now on is at what speed and with what discipline the process will be completed."
