15 years of autocracy: How did Erdogan destroy Turkish opposition?

Before he came to power in Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan wore the mask of a democratic man and a defender of freedoms, and he sought to create diversity within Turkish political life. He made many promises to this effect; however, once he became prime minister in 2003, he began gradually abandoning these false slogans.

After assuming the presidency of Turkey in 2014, Erdogan gave up the slogans of democracy and showed his true dictatorial face, working to destroy any efforts that would lead to the path of democratization, eliminating any step to rotate power between all Turkish political parties, and abusing opponents.

Changing the political map

Erdogan was elected on March 9, 2003 as a member of the Turkish parliament for the city of Sirte, and he ascended to power in Turkey a week later on March 15 when he took the post of prime minister with the approval of his Justice and Development Party (AKP), which had a parliamentary majority at the time.

When Erdogan first became prime minister, the Turkish constitution stipulated that Turkey’s system of government was parliamentary, with the president serving as a merely honorary position. Erdogan had committed to this because it ensured his ambitions of changing the Turkish political map by virtue of being the number one man there.

He served as Turkey’s prime minister for 11 years, during which he committed all sorts of abuses against his political opponents. Through his dictatorship, he succeeded in making the AKP the only party on the Turkish political scene.

Violating the Turkish constitution

According to the Turkish constitution, the prime minister was not allowed to remain in office for more than two terms, which made Erdogan take the presidency in August 2014. This meant curtailing his presence on the Turkish domestic scene, as well as his inability to speak on behalf of Turkey in foreign affairs; however, he was able to circumvent this situation as well. He continued to exercise his dictatorial grip, marginalizing Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who held the office from August 2014 until May 2016.

After assuming the ceremonial post of president, Erdogan dealt with issues through the local and international media as a "citizen" with the right to express his opinion on issues of interest to his country. He took advantage of the fact that Davutoglu was a member of the AKP and would not object to Erdogan’s constitutional violations.

Erdogan's dictatorship over the course of his 11 years as prime minister, his disrespect for the Turkish constitution, and his other decisions and actions were met by Turks with a wave of outrage, which was reflected in the 2015 elections, when the popularity of the AKP declined. The party failed to garner a parliamentary majority for the first time in 15 years.

Forging legislative elections

The AKP’s failure to obtain the parliamentary majority meant that it did not have the right to form a government. Consequently, the post of prime minister would go to another party or bloc, meaning the constitution would be reactivated and Erdogan’s constitutional violations could be stopped.

Erdogan circumvented the will of the Turkish people and directed the AKP to oppose the formation of a coalition government with any of the other parties. The constitution required the formation of a coalition party due to the absence of any party gaining a parliamentary majority in the 2015 elections, but any attempts to do so by other political forces were blocked by the AKP.

With Erdogan facing this precarious political situation, AKP members called for early parliamentary elections in November 2015, just a few months after failing to garner a majority in the previous election. They claimed they were seeking to overcome the constitutional crisis created by the failure of the rest of the Turkish parties to form a coalition government.

The parliamentary elections were held early, and the AKP won an overwhelming parliamentary majority, as if Turkish voters, who had just rejected the AKP months earlier, suddenly accepted and re-affirmed the party. Now Erdogan had achieved what he wanted, with these false results ensuring that he alone would remain in power.

The trick of the failed coup

After the elections in 2015 were rigged, the Turkish political parties and forces tried to unite their ranks to get rid of the AKP's dominance, as the dictator's grip had not yet taken hold of all of Turkey. Erdogan felt in danger, so he devised a new trick to guarantee the humiliation of his opponents: the failed military coup that took place on July 15, 2016.

Most evidence confirms that the AKP, headed by Erdogan, had masterminded this failed coup d'état in order to implement the "New Ottoman" plan aimed at restoring the Ottoman Empire by occupying the Muslim and Arab countries after their destruction. In a matter of days, the Erdogan was able to impose his control over all Turkish state institutions, which enabled him to determine his policies with more power and without accountability.

After the deceit of the failed coup, Erdogan managed to tighten his dictatorship on all parts of Turkey. He began to manipulate his political opponents, with no one daring to oppose him. Then he began to change Turkey’s political structure, including the constitution and parties, so that he could remain in power forever.

Arbitrary arrest campaigns

Following the failed coup, Erdogan’s regime launched arbitrary arrest campaigns that affected all sections of Turkish society. Since that day, up to 50,000 Turks have been held in prisons and detention centers, in addition to 70,000 others, including students, 252,000 prisoners, 768 children and 135 journalists, with 361 prisoners in critical health not allowed to receive treatment.

According to statistics from human rights centers and international bodies, the number of Turkish students arrested by Erdogan since his rise to power has reached two thirds of the total number of Turkish detainees and prisoners, along with more than 100,000 others who are still being tried.

Since July 2016, the Erdogan regime has isolated 150,000 who were working in the army and police and various sectors, in addition to separating 4,500 judges and prosecutors from their work. The regime also closed 2,349 educational and health institutions, 30 publishing houses and 15 universities, and it took over 1,000 companies with an estimated capital of 46 billion Turkish liras.

Constitution serves Erdogan

In February 2017, just eight months after the attempted coup, the AKP changed 18 articles of the Turkish constitution to serve Erdogan, perpetuating his eternal survival and allowing him to harass any opponents.

However, Erdogan was not content with all these dictatorial laws and practices, so he charged every Turkish citizen not belonging to the AKP of “insulting the president”.

Under the "insulting the president" law, Turkey’s parliament lifted the immunity of 68 MPs on Wednesday, December 26. Most of the MPs are from the Republican People's Party, which leads the Turkish opposition. The prosecution charged them with insulting Erdogan, which made them subject to imprisonment for a period of one to four years.

According to a Turkish newspaper, Erdogan’s regime has charged more than 68,800 Turkish citizens with "insulting the president", and more than 12,800 of them have been tried before the judiciary. Another 3,000 have been arrested on the same accusations.