Uğur Mumcu, Martyr of the Republic

Uğur Mumcu described himself as pro-labor, anti-imperialist, a proponent of national independence, and socialist-leaning. His ideological preference was a form of socialism compatible with the fundamental principles and founding philosophy of the Republic, one that defended Turkey's national interests and drew a clear line against ethnic separatism. He viewed the country and the world from an Ankara-centered perspective:

"In terms of my views, I am socialist-leaning. That is, I want the laboring classes to take over the administration of society... I increase my socialist consciousness every day.... A nationally independent left! I am socialist-leaning; I want the working class and the laboring classes and strata to come to power through democratic means. I have never, ever abandoned this view."

During a period when the ideologically masked power struggle and conflict of interest between the USSR and the People's Republic of China divided leftist movements in our country along Moscow and Beijing axes, he directed criticisms at both sides. He looked at the world through a leftist window, but through a Turkish prism. Because of this perspective, he would be criticized by certain individuals and circles who defined themselves as socialist-revolutionaries.

He would persistently defend his Turkey-centered view against all these criticisms and accusations of being pro-state. He saw the establishment of the Republic on the basis of a nation-state and a unitary structure as a necessary condition for existence in the difficult geography where Turkey is located. He never lost his belief in a socialist ideology formed along the axes of Atatürk's principles, economic and political independence, the rule of law, and modern democracy.

He engaged in harsh debates with imperialism, the left-masked extensions of imperialism, and ethnic separatism that used leftist rhetoric. He warned and harshly criticized those who advocated for armed actions in the name of leftism and revolutionism, those who were disconnected from the people, and those who defended armed terror as an effective revolutionary method. During the March 12 period, he recalled the tragic results of urban and rural guerrilla attempts that were theoretically attractive. He characterized such rhetoric and actions as a 'Dead End' and rejected them:

"Is this what you call leftism? Is leftism banditry that rains bullets on poor soldiers and robs banks? If so, may such leftism sink to the bottom of the earth... Is this what you call nationalism? Is nationalism a monstrosity that kills prosecutors, judges, university faculty members, and police chiefs, and drinks the blood of citizens? If so, may such nationalism sink to the bottom of the earth..."

He maintained an extremely determined stance against the ideological conflicts, separatism, and the fundamentalist activities directed at our country by the Middle East and imperial-backed theocratic regimes that became widespread across the country and turned into armed conflict before September 12. He saw long ago that the economic opening of green capital, which was fattened with the open/covert support of imperial circles and certain theocratic Arab regimes, would lead to such political tendencies gaining the power to dominate the country's administration in the future, and he made efforts to warn the authorities and the public. A wide political spectrum, from left to right, which had problems with the founding philosophy of the Republic of Turkey, was disturbed by Mumcu's initiatives and resistance, which found resonance in public opinion.

He was concerned about the possible consequences of the spiral of terror the country had fallen into and the fault lines it would create. He pointed out that the country would face the danger of division and be dragged into a chaos that would be difficult to escape from during periods of governments that were insensitive to the founding values of the Republic and were in a state of negligence.

"Is there any other 'multi-party life' on earth where the blood of citizens—workers, peasants, students, faculty members, military and civilian, educated and uneducated—is shed so irresponsibly?"

Instead of taking sides in the polarization and power struggle between the West and the USSR, he tried to do what was necessary for an Ankara-centered stance that prioritized national interests. At a time when the Soviet bloc was still standing, he demonstrated with evidence that the destabilization directed at Turkey was not one-sided or single-fronted, and showed the destructive effects of arms smuggling carried out through Bulgaria. He revealed with documents the activities of certain mafia-like formations, arms and drug traffickers, under the protection of Socialist Bulgaria (!).

He shared his studies on the historical process and the current stage of ethnic separatism and political Kurdish nationalism in our country with the public through articles and books. Shortly before his assassination, in his article dated January 7, 1993, he mentioned that without knowing the strategic calculations of the West and Israel regarding the region, it would be impossible to understand what Kurdish nationalism in Turkey and neighboring countries meant and whom it served. He ruthlessly criticized the strangeness and ill intent in the labeling of Kurdish nationalist structures, which had acted as the gendarmerie of imperial centers in our region, as leftist and anti-imperialist by certain leftist circles in Turkey.

He frequently brought to the agenda that the reason for the failure to prevent and punish the looting of public resources, the emptying of banks, fictitious exports, all kinds of fraud, and the defrauding of the public was the dirty politics intertwined with corruption. He revealed with all evidence the corruption and the damage caused to the public by certain politicians who had climbed to the peaks of politics and sat in ministerial seats. He documented that certain influential writers, journalists, and programmers in print and visual media acted as lobbyists for their bosses, changed their views when their bosses changed, and misled the public with dirty information. He revealed with evidence how some media stars and television programmers with record-breaking ratings defrauded their institutions, how they inflated their personal expenses unrelated to their work with fake/nylon invoices to collect them, how they committed forgery in official documents, and how they made the state pay for their personal expenses.

The best definitions regarding the personality and identity of Uğur Mumcu, who broke new ground in journalism, created a style, established principles with his writings and words, and created a model, belong to him:

"I am an Atatürkist.... I am a republican... I am secular... I am anti-imperialist... I am in favor of a fully independent Turkey... I am a defender of human rights... I am against terror... I am an enemy of bigots, thieves, profiteers, and opportunists. Until yesterday morning, you could not refute any subject I researched and wrote about. So then, strike, tear me apart; from every piece of me, people like me will be born who will surpass me."

Uğur Mumcu would be murdered precisely because of this identity and this characteristic. Uğur Mumcu's exemplary identity and his struggle practice, which perfectly overlapped with the citizen model the Republic wanted to create, would be the cause of his death.

What is painful is that while the responsibility of the hitmen in the assassination was proven during the trial process and the mullah regime behind them was exposed like a passport photo, 31 years after his murder, Mumcu is still remembered as the victim of an "unsolved" assassination!