'A new liberal wave is preparing to attack in Turkey'

TKP General Secretary Kemal Okuyan answered Gökhan Kazbek's questions on the "Communist Perspective" program on soL TV.

Speaking about the death of Fethullah Gülen, TKP General Secretary Kemal Okuyan emphasized that Gülen emerged from the Association for the Struggle Against Communism. Stating that the Gülen line covers a very broad spectrum in Turkey, Okuyan said that the event cannot actually be narrowed down to a single organization:

"They said it was the end of an era, not with the death of Fethullah Gülen, but with the failure of the July 15 coup attempt, but no, that was not the case. To explain this situation, we actually need to look at the story of the Fethullah Gülen Community or how it went from the 'Hizmet Movement' to 'FETÖ'.  

What I am about to say may sound ambitious to some, but we are talking about it these days; this newborn gang, the femicides, it all comes back to the issue of social decay. But it is like that; anti-communism also causes decay. In my opinion, Fethullah Gülen is actually the religion of neoliberalism. Perhaps it starts before the neoliberal attack, but at its core, there is anti-communism."

'ANTI-COMMUNISM IS A CRIME, DECAY, IMMORALITY' PRODUCES'

Stating that "not everyone has to be a communist, but anti-communism produces crime, produces decay, and produces immorality," Okuyan noted that when looking at the history of Turkey, nothing done under the guise of "fighting communism" has been honest or moral. 

Reminding that the Gülen Community also influenced the left, Kemal Okuyan used the following expressions: "That left is also anti-communist. No benefit to humanity or the country has ever come from anti-communism. That is why decay always emerges from the right in Turkey, because anti-communism is at the core of the right."

He drew attention to the fact that there is a political religion at play and that this approach currently remains in power, constantly reproducing itself. Okuyan said, "Therefore, one can never say that an era has closed. Yes, it left without being held accountable, but there are many elements that can be held accountable. Those who are partners in the same crime or representatives of the same mentality." 

'ALL SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CHANNELS OF TURKEY WERE INTERVENED IN SIMULTANEOUSLY'

The TKP General Secretary said the following:

"A distinction needs to be made here; the Fethullah Gülen Community was not the first among equals because it became the system itself. When you look at this story, especially from the 1990s onwards, the need for the system in Turkey to change itself—that is, the need to get rid of certain 'burdens' from the past—created a need for transformation in Turkey's economy, state system, political structure, and cultural life."  

The Fethullahists intervened with a will to accelerate Turkey's transformation in a negative sense. The Fethullah Gülen Community is the system itself. The 'parallel structure' or 'Fethullahist terrorist organization' trying to seize the state and so on—these are just stories..."

There is no organizational chart for this group because it is not an organization. Not in the sense we understand it. An intervention was carried out, and this intervention was made simultaneously across all social and political channels in Turkey. We must not forget that it wrapped itself around the media, culture, football, sports, and tabloids like a spider web. It intervened everywhere and, in the same vein, it also intervened in the left.

What was at the core of this? It was an intervention aimed at creating a more favorable climate for the new accumulation model required by capitalism in Turkey, as well as for the regional expansions, international ambitions, and the role of Turkish capitalism within the imperialist system. That is why it took some time. When we look at it today, can other religious communities play this role? We cannot know. This does not mean that other communities are less dangerous, but the Fethullah Gülen issue was completely different, and it embedded itself directly into the system."

'ALL STATE RESOURCES WERE UTILIZED'

Explaining that the Gülen Community provided great services to Turkish capitalism, Kemal Okuyan noted that it had an impact—in a negative sense—not only on Islamist capital but also in establishing international connections for other major holdings and in increasing Turkey's regional weight. "For example, who discovered Sudan, was it discovered recently? No, we are talking about a system that established schools in 160 countries," he said.

"They were so audacious, they were calculating so much that while they were entering everywhere on behalf of imperialism, they didn't even skip Cuba; they tried to enter there too. Cuba did not accept it, of course," said Okuyan, reminding that the Gülen Community had over 2,000 schools. Stating that "there is no such organization, all the resources of the state were used here," Kemal Okuyan described the "tremendous damage" the Gülen Community caused to Turkey with these words:

"Culture and arts in Turkey regressed, sports regressed, and I am not even counting politics. They tried to infiltrate all political parties and infiltrated the majority of them; the media is a disgrace, a document of shame. I am not even counting Taraf newspaper and other newspapers; the state of some newspapers known as leftist... They officially became part of this operation. As I said, it must be underlined here that there is no insidious organization trying to seize state institutions in Turkey according to a plan. It was organized as an attack on Turkish society and our people as a part of the system itself. Meanwhile, major operations were carried out against elements they saw as obstacles, such as purges in the armed forces, the judiciary, and academia." 

The counter-revolution devoured its own child. Now everyone is cursing Fethullah Gülen behind his back, but this is hypocrisy. Let me be very clear: they are ungrateful; he provided great services for the interests of this exploitative order, this vile order. He provided great services for the interests of imperialism; today, no one who acts as a NATO supporter in Turkey has the right to criticize Fethullah Gülen."

'A NEW LIBERAL WAVE IS PREPARING TO ATTACK IN TURKEY'

Stating that the "we were deceived" claim is baseless and that the government is shaping Turkey through its policies, Okuyan, drew attention to this mentality and the possibility of it appearing before us again. 

"A new liberal wave is preparing to attack in Turkey; we will encounter these again, therefore. This will never end," Okuyan said, reminding that a hand was extended to those who, until yesterday, were telling the AKP that it "cannot draft a new constitution."

'The healthcare system is designed from top to bottom to pave the way for such incidents'

Speaking about the newborn gang, Kemal Okuyan reacted to the statement by the former Istanbul Provincial Health Director and Minister of Health Kemal Memişoğlu. "You knew, you did not take the necessary precautions, and since that date, babies have died and hospitals have remained open," Okuyan said, noting that on one hand, the state's money is being stolen, while on the other, babies are dying, and from other places, various allegations have begun to emerge.

He stated that the marketization and privatization of healthcare, along with the AKP, have led to this situation, which is also a Stating that there is decay, the TKP General Secretary said, "The criminal dimension is being highlighted a lot, or rather it should be, of course; there are infant deaths involved, so this must absolutely be questioned and punished. But there is something being forgotten: the healthcare system in Turkey is designed almost from top to bottom in a way that paves the way for such incidents." 

Okuyan said the following:

"We do not say that this is a systemic problem and that capitalism must be dismantled for no reason. The AKP deliberately strove to pit patients and doctors against each other. They bankrupted state hospitals. With what? By applying market rules. I fear that the issue here will end up falling on the heads of 3 nurses; we must not allow this."

There are approximately 600 private hospitals in Turkey, and money is being funneled into them like crazy. Only some doctors and nurses should not be shown as the culprits of this business. We need statism."

'NEGOTIATIONS, THE PARTIES MUST BE CLEARLY AND EXPLICITLY DEFINED'

Responding to a question from journalist and author Zülal Kalkandelen regarding the new resolution process, Kemal Okuyan said that they do not hold the view that "nothing will come of this in a simple sense." The TKP's within the system Reiterating his approach that the issue cannot be resolved within the system, Okuyan emphasized that it is important for the actors and the content of the negotiations to be clearly and transparently presented.

"If this issue concerns the entire country, it must be handled in the public eye; this is not a technical detail, and everyone should say what they have to say on this matter," said Okuyan, noting that concepts such as autonomy or federation under the guise of localization would not yield anything good for the Kurdish people or anyone living in Turkey. Expressing that they have put forward a vision in their congress documents where everyone can live equally and freely in brotherhood, Okuyan said the following:

"'The idea that Turkey's borders will loosen and that a Turkey that solves the Kurdish issue will grow stronger and begin to establish regional dominance' has been voiced by both sides. Some said, 'If Turkey does not do this, it will fall apart; let it grow and expand, let it solve this problem, and let it do so on an Islamist basis because ethnic origins divide while Islam unites.' What is the constitutional equivalent of this? It is trampling on secularism.

'Do you object to peace coming to Turkey?' No, certainly not. There are many people in Turkey who have been imprisoned unjustly or for absurd political reasons.

There are serious signs of an escalation in tensions with Iran in Turkey; these are very dangerous processes. 'They could make Turkey a part of a very bloody process under the guise of bringing peace and a solution. There is another phenomenon; they talk about the Israeli threat, yet they do not take the necessary actions. In fact, we sense preparations that could mean making certain regional moves in the same direction as Israel, and we are warning society against this. Especially regarding Syria. We will monitor these. We are not taking back our statement that 'the AKP does not have the competence to draft a constitution'; our stance is clear. Nothing good will come of this in this sense. We will continue our struggle, but it is too early to say certain things."