Turkey's Erdogan shuts schools, charities in first state of emergency decree

[uawchild]

Source: Reuters

President Tayyip Erdogan tightened his grip on Turkey on Saturday, ordering the closure of thousands of private schools, charities and other institutions in his first decree since imposing a state of emergency after the failed military coup.

A restructuring of Turkey's once untouchable military also drew closer, with a planned meeting between Erdogan and the already purged top brass brought forward by several days.

The schools and other institutions are suspected by Turkish authorities of having links to U.S.-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen, who has many followers in Turkey. Erdogan has accused Gulen of orchestrating the July 15 coup attempt in which at least 246 people were killed. Gulen denies the accusation.

Critics of Erdogan fear he is using the abortive coup to wage an indiscriminate crackdown on dissent. The foundations targeted include, for example, the Association of Judges and Prosecutors (YARSAV), a secular group that criticised a recent judicial law drafted by Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-security-emergency-idUSKCN1030BC

[christx30]

1. How long will the US be silent

on one of it's NATO allies becoming full on dictator?

[Igel]

2. For a while.

Protocol says to stay out of domestic politics.

Yes, Holland and Obama have broken this bit of protocol, but it can be respected going forward.

However, it is interesting that the idea that Obama supports this is still around. Or that Obama is duped or too stupid to set his own foreign policy. Anti-US exceptionalism is as deep seated in some US politics as anti-intellectualism is in others.

[christx30]

7. I'm not implying anything of the sort about Obama.

I don't think he's stupid. But I think it's ok to speak out. Especially given how important Turkey is to the US military in the middle east. And considering the fact that there are a bunch of US nukes in the airbase there. Have US troops been allowed back in since the coup?

[6chars]

15. The State Department has already spoken out about this

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2016/07/260261.htm

QUESTION: There have been an enormous number of arrests and firings in Turkey. We’re talking like 20,000 civil servants, 8,000 police, 9,000 troops, every single dean of every pubic university in the country. What do you make of this? Is this not a little bit concerning to you, or is this something that you think is warranted by the attempted coup?

MR TONER: Sure. Good question and a fair question. What we have said and what our assessment continues to be is that in the aftermath of Friday’s dramatic events, where the democratically elected Government of Turkey and the people of Turkey felt under threat that their government was about to be overthrown by a military coup, it is understandable and justified, frankly, that the government would take actions to go after the perpetrators, to conduct a thorough investigation into what happened, and really to try to provide for the security of the Turkish people in light of, as I said, what was a – an intended coup of the government, the democratically elected government. So I cannot overstate the sense of the Turkish Government and the Turkish people right now that they truly felt and truly feel under threat.

At the same time, the types of arrests and roundups and that you cite have not gone unnoticed by us. We have urged the Government of Turkey to maintain calm and stability in the wake of Friday’s events, but also – or we’ve also urged them to uphold the democratic standards that the Turkish constitution provides for, as well as rule of law.

So just to sum up, we support completely the efforts to bring the perpetrators of the coup to justice. We just also caution against any kind of overreach that goes beyond that.

QUESTION: You don’t – so you don’t think that this is overreach? I mean, you’re talking tens of thousands of people here. Surely if they were all involved – I mean, if they were all involved in this, one would assume that the coup would have gone a different way, no? I mean, do you really think that this is – that this kind of a reaction is warranted and that is justified, as you said, as in --

MR TONER: In light of --

QUESTION: In going after the coup plotters, has the Government of Turkey, to this point, since Friday, upheld the democratic standards and rule of law that you are calling for them to --

MR TONER: Look, Turkey is an ally; Turkey’s a partner; Turkey’s a friend. We understand the tremendous stress that the government has gone through. But in all of our conversations – in all of our conversations, whether it’s through Secretary Kerry – and also, as you know, President Obama spoke with President Erdogan earlier today – we have also stressed the need to avoid any escalation and avoid any efforts or any actions, rather, that would increase tensions and, frankly, jeopardize the strong democratic tradition that clearly Turkey’s citizens hold dear and were out in the street defending on last Friday.

[cstanleytech]

4. For awhile until they see what way the wind is blowing but it wouldnt surprise me

if they were already loading those nukes on planes to get them out of Turkey assuming of course they didnt do that months ago.

[karynnj]

6. They and the EU have not been quiet - they have spoken up. The point is what could they do?

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/19/world/europe/eu-turkey-coup-erdogan.html?_r=0

They made it clear this hurt any chance of joining the EU. They also tiptoed around whether they jeopardized their standing in NATO. The problem here is that there are reasons they WANT Turkey in NATO.

Not to mention, Erdogan and his allies immediately blamed the US as complicit and there is an intensification to the anti Americanism that was already in Turkey. My guess is that he did this BOTH to implicate Gulen, but also to make the US slower to attack him.

[Duckhunter935]

3. He is just becoming a dictator

[forest444]

5. Another rogue state living off the US taxpayer dime.

What else is new.

[7962]

8. Good that he's cracking down on those dangerous charities!!!

More proof, to me, that this whole coup was setup by him so he'd have more freedom to do shit like this

[Matthew28]

9. What a evil man

Backwards and pointless.

[anamnua]

10. Echoes of the Reichstag fire? Nt

[left-of-center2012]

11. Bet a lot of folks regret not supporting the coup

So mant people in Turkey now jailed or fired due to the coup's failure.
Bet they're think "Oh #&%$"

[Sand Rat Expat]

12. Bingo.

And I'd lay good money that a lot of the military guys who wind up getting executed will have the classic "I told you so" look on their faces. Day late and a dollar short, Turkey.

[6chars]

13. Turkey: A Great Cheap Place to Retire

http://www.retirementforseniors.com/retire-in-turkey

There are a few very good reasons as to why many people are now looking at Turkey as a cheap and comfortable place to retire. At the end of the day, once we reach those golden years in life, we want to make sure we are able to enjoy a top-class lifestyle but we really don’t want to have to pay through the nose for it. We also want to be able to get outdoors a lot more and this will often mean having to leave our chillier northern climes. When it comes to the large country of Turkey, you are bound to be able to find a specific area that suits you down to the ground; moreover, you really will be pleasantly surprised with the cheaper cost of living once you get there.

Bargain Prices for Renting and Purchasing Property

So, if you are contemplating retiring to Turkey, now is most definitely the time to do it. You will find that rental and property purchase prices are excellent value for the money in the country right now and to give you some examples here, you can secure beautifully-appointed one-bedroom apartments for sale in the most affluent resorts for around €32,000. A three-bedroom villa on an amazing resort complex with golfing opportunities, swimming, fitness centers and many other amenities can cost as little as €178,000.

[Feeling the Bern]

14. Authoritarianism is on the rise all over the world. Face it, the terrorists won

The Chinese population in Malaysia is expecting PM Najib in Malaysia to do the same thing.
That nationalistic psychopath Abe Shinzo has a full majority in Japan's Lege, so they will change their constitution to make it more authoritarian and militaristic.
Let's not go into what that sociopath in Philippines is doing sanctioning extrajudicial vigilantism without trial.

The US State government, along with the Feds, pass authoritarian laws like militarizing the police, making recording them illegal and allowing their dashcams and bodycams to be immune from FOIA requests, along with the extrajudicial killings of unarmed people.

The terrorists won.