Turkey’s trial of the century
Church, state, and secret societies clash in Ergenekon coup case
What happened
Turkey opened its trial against 86 people—including retired generals and journalists—accused of bomb-throwing, murdering a judge and five others, and plotting to overthrow the state. The defendants are alleged members of a secret ultranationalist group, Ergenekon, that seeks to undermine social order and provoke a military coup. (The New York Times)
What the commentators said
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
This is Turkey’s “trial of the century,” said Bulent Kenes in Britain’s The Guardian. Why? Turkey has long been “characterized by an abundance of mysterious murders” and other shadowy violence, and this indictment shows that much of it, back to 1952, can be tied to Ergenekon and its predecessors. This trial lets the country confront its “dark past.”
Well, “to call the trial controversial would be an understatement,” said Michael van der Galien in PoliGazette. Most Turks believe that there is something to the charges, but are “skeptical about the government’s far-reaching claims.” The trial is—at least in part—part of the Islamist government's crackdown on its moderate secularist opponents.
The trial does seem to mix real conspirators with innocent critics, said Pelin Turgut in TIME online. But its biggest shortfall is in not covering “the murky Kurdish conflict in southeast Turkey,” in which hundreds of prominent Kurds were mysteriously murdered in the 1980s and ’90s. This trial might shine some much-needed light in Turkey, but some topics are still off-limits.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Does depopulation threaten humanity?
Talking Points Falling birth rates could create a 'smaller, sadder, poorer future'
-
New White House guidance means federal employees could be hearing more religious talk at work
The Explainer Employees can now try to persuade co-workers of why their religion is 'correct'
-
Real-life couples creating real-deal sparks in the best movies to star IRL partners
The Week Recommends The chemistry between off-screen items can work wonders