Learning Our Lessons From The '49 Hostages' Crisis

The 49 people who were taken hostage by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) were eventually released. Thus, Turkey has taken a deep breath.

We had been waiting anxiously for 101 days, praying for the quick release of our Mosul consul general and the consulate's officials and their families. We were deeply concerned as ISIL has made it a habit to behead people, record this savage ritual on video and post it on social networks. Moreover, they would kill everyone along the route they advanced, establishing what they called the Islamic State. We knew the damage done by those who declared themselves a caliphate in the image of Islam.
It is good to see the 49 hostages return home unharmed. Regardless of who rushes to take credit for their return, we are happy to see them back. Thank God they came back unharmed. At this point, it doesn't make any difference if President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says, "They were freed with an operation," or if Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu says, "They were released as a result of negotiations." There is even no need to look too far and ask if the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) or the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) played a bigger role in freeing the hostages. What matters is the security of the 49 people and the future of this country.
As the proverb goes, "A good scare is worth more than good advice." It is time to listen to wise advice. If we fail to learn lessons from the “49 hostages” crisis, we may walk into more scandalous crises in the future. I regret to note that there are strong doubts about the potential link between certain armed organizations and the Turkish government. Serious charges were attributed to Turkey, such as the al-Nusra Front, al-Qaeda or ISIL drawing recruits and even obtaining weapons from Turkey.
Furthermore, it was implied that the Turkish government has engaged in certain economic ties with ISIL, such as the oil trade. These are serious accusations. These accusations -- voiced by well-known and respectable newspapers -- have been strongly denied, but those papers continue to stand by their claims. Meanwhile, US officials have confirmed some of these claims.
For instance, US Secretary of State John Kerry made a statement confirming the oil trade. For some reason our state officials have failed to show the same harsh reactions to Kerry.
It is wrong to establish ties with armed organizations or engage in affairs with them because you cannot know when they will target whom. Moreover, in their search for conjuncture-based legitimacy, these organizations always leave behind debris. There is still no end to the turmoil in Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is hard to predict what damage pro-ISIL people may bring to Turkey and the region. If lessons had been learned from past incidents, we would have been happier about the return of the hostages.

Schools on fire

Everyone is keeping silent, turning a blind eye to so many unfavorable developments so the settlement process may proceed unabated, but the resulting damage is growing bigger and bigger. The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) set 23 schools ablaze last week. As noted in a statement by the General Staff, the PKK is trying people at courts it established. Not a single state official can utter any single critical remark about these scandalous developments. Let us assume that they are tolerating them for the sake of the settlement process, but then why are they pursuing a harsh and demonizing rhetoric against other groups?
For instance, Mr. Erdoğan attended a meeting by the Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen's Association (TÜSİAD), where he hurled threats at many groups, including the businessmen attending the meeting. He parroted the same insults, accused the Gezi Park protesters of trying to overthrow the government and uttered reprehensible remarks about forcing a private bank into bankruptcy. What about the PKK's attacks? Not a single criticism.
If you use a harsh language against all social groups, but fail to condemn attacks by an armed organization, you are giving a bad message to society. People will then ask: Are we doing it all wrong by sticking to democratic means? They will further ask: Do you fear the PKK just because of their weapons?

EKREM DUMANLI (Cihan/Today's Zaman)