Kenan Evren
Kenan Evren | |
---|---|
![]() Kenan Evren during the state visit to the United States in June 1988 | |
7th President of Turkey | |
In office 12 September 1980 – 9 November 1989 | |
Prime Minister | Bülend Ulusu Turgut Özal |
Preceded by | Fahri Korutürk |
Succeeded by | Turgut Özal |
Chief of the General Staff of Turkey | |
In office 7 March 1978 – 1 July 1983 | |
Preceded by | Semih Sancar |
Succeeded by | Nurettin Ersin |
Commander of the Turkish Army | |
In office 5 September 1977 – 6 March 1978 | |
Preceded by | Semih Sancar |
Succeeded by | Nurettin Ersin |
Personal details | |
Born | Alaşehir, Ottoman Empire | 17 July 1917
Died | 9 May 2015 Ankara, Turkey | (aged 97)
Cause of death | Gastrointestinal bleeding induced by bradycardia and proctocolectomy |
Resting place | Turkish State Cemetery |
Nationality | Turkish |
Spouse(s) | |
Children | 3 |
Signature | ![]() |
Military service | |
Allegiance | ![]() |
Branch/service | ![]() |
Years of service | 1938–1983 |
Rank | General |
Ahmet Kenan Evren (Turkish: [ˈce.nan ˈev.ɾen]; 17 July 1917 – 9 May 2015) was a Turkish politician and military officer, who served as the seventh President of Turkey from 1980 to 1989. He assumed the post by leading the 1980 military coup.
On 18 June 2014, a Turkish court sentenced him to life imprisonment and demotion of his military rank down to private, from army general, for leading the military coup in 1980, obstructing democracy by deposing the prime minister Süleyman Demirel, abolishing the parliament and the senate and abolishing the constitution. This sentence was on appeal at the time of his death.[1]
Evren died at a military hospital in Ankara on 9 May 2015, aged 97.[2][3]
Biography[]
Kenan Evren was born in Alaşehir, Manisa Province.[4] Evren was of Albanian descent[5][6] on his father's side that originated from Preševo, while his mother was from a Bulgarian Turkish background.[7] After going to elementary school and middle school in Manisa, Balıkesir and Istanbul, he attended military high school in Maltepe, Ankara. In 1938, he graduated from army school and in 1949 from military academy as a staff officer.[4]
From 1958 to 1959, he served in the Turkish Brigade in Korea. In 1964, he was promoted to general. Evren served at various posts as Army Chief. He was the commander of Operation Gladio's Turkish branch; the Counter-Guerrilla. The Counter-Guerrilla was an anti-communist "stay-behind" guerrilla force set up with the support of NATO.[8] He became Chief of General Staff in March 1978.[4]
1980 military coup d'état[]
The years leading to the coup were characterized as a fierce struggle between the rightists and leftists. Hoping to see a communist revolution, the left wingers rioted in the streets; on the other hand, the nationalist rightists fought back the left wingers and provoked religious arousal. Universities had taken sides and each became headquarters for either the leftists or rightists.
With the coup came the National Security Council as the ruling body. The council of 1980 was composed of the commanders Kenan Evren, the Chief of Staff and President of the State. The parliament was dissolved. After the coup, Kenan Evren was elected as President of Turkey on 7 November 1982 with the 90% approval of the new constitution that was submitted to a controversial referendum, replacing the older constitution which, according to him, had liberties too "luxurious" for Turkey.[9]
Evren suspended many forms of civil liberties and human rights on the grounds that it was necessary to establish stability. He professed great admiration for the founder of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk; however, he shut down many institutions founded by Atatürk and is often accused of deforming the country's legal system against Atatürk's principles. During his military regime, many people were tortured and executed due to their political beliefs.
Evren took strong measures to ensure that the division between the political left and right would not turn into violence again; the new constitution limited the rights and depoliticized the youth.
According to a report on the Susurluk scandal of 1996, prepared by Prime Ministry Inspection Board deputy chairman Kutlu Savaş, quoted by the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey, "Fascists had been released from prison in return for 'finishing some jobs' under Evren's rule after 12 September 1980".[10]
Responding to a journalist's question regarding the execution of Erdal Eren, an alleged 17-year-old but according to official records born in 1961 who was accused of killing a Turkish soldier, he responded "Should we feed him rather than hang him?"[11][12]
Post-presidency[]
After his retirement, he moved to the Turkish Mediterranean resort town of Armutalan, Marmaris, and took up painting.[13]
On 2 August 2006, a reported plan for assassinating Evren was thwarted when two men were apprehended and arrested in Muğla.[14]
A previous attempt in 1996 had already been tracked down when two members of the assassination team spoke on a cellphone eavesdropped by the police, and the Islamic call to prayer (adhan) could be heard during their conversation. Since the timing of the adhan was 4–5 minutes after Istanbul, a point slightly more to the west by that time margin was sought and the team members were caught in Marmaris itself.[15]
In 2004, he revealed that his daughter, Şenay Gürvit, and son-in-law, Erkan Gürvit, are members of the National Intelligence Organization. His daughter presided over the reprisal operations against the militant Armenian organization ASALA.[16]
After Bülent Ecevit's death, he expressed remorse over the arrest of political leaders after the 1980 coup,[13] but defended the coup itself and the 35 executions.[17]
Civilian resentment exists, and there were demands for his being called to account following the Ergenekon investigation.[18][19]
Trial and conviction[]
On 10 January 2012, Turkish courts decided to press charges against General Kenan Evren and General Tahsin Şahinkaya, former Commander of the Turkish Air Force, for their role in the 1980 coup. Prosecutors sought life sentences against them.[20] The first court hearing of the case was scheduled for 4 April 2012.[21] Both were sentenced to life imprisonment on 18 June 2014 by a court in Ankara.[22] In accordance with Article 30 of the Military Penal Code, Evren and Şahinkaya were demoted to the lowest rank of private.
Personal life[]
Evren married Sekine Evren in 1944 and they had three daughters, Şenay, Gülay and Miray. Sekine died in 1982.[23] In 1990, he was awarded the Atatürk International Peace Prize.[24]
Illness and death[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/Kenan_Evren_cenaze_%289%29.jpg/235px-Kenan_Evren_cenaze_%289%29.jpg)
Evren was hospitalized for massive gastrointestinal bleeding on 3 August 2009, in Yalıkavak, Bodrum, where his summer house is located.[25] A temporary artificial pacemaker was applied to Evren while in intensive care due to bradycardia.[26] His large intestine was removed a week later at GATA in Istanbul (Gülhane Military Medicine Academy) where he was transferred.[27] He was discharged on 24 September 2009.
Evren died at a military hospital in Ankara on 9 May 2015, aged 97.[2] On 12 May, he was buried in the Turkish State Cemetery in Ankara following the funeral service held at Ahmet Hamdi Akseki Mosque. The funeral was attended by his close relatives and military personnel. In protest, political parties sent no representatives to the former president's funeral. A number of people protested during the religious service in the mosque's courtyard.[28]
References[]
- ^ "Kenan Evren ve Tahsin Şahinkaya hakkındaki dosya 6 aydır Yargıtay'a gönderilmedi". Hürriyet. 24 November 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2015.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Former Turkish president Evren dies aged 97", Reuters, 9 May 2015.
- ^ https://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/05/10/world/europe/kenan-evren-dies-at-97-led-turkeys-1980-coup.html
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Biography, Presidency of the Republic of Turkey
- ^ Balkan Türkleri Sempozyumu, 7 Haziran 1992: tebliğler. Erciyes Üniversitesi. 1992. p. 21.
- ^ Behmoaras, Lizi (1993). Türkiye'de aydınların gözüyle Yahudiler. Gözlem Gazetecilik Basın ve Yayın. p. 37. ISBN 9789757304005. "Cumhurbaşkanı Kenan Evren Arnavut kökenli."
- ^ Misyon, Balkan göçmenleri ve Kenan Evren, Üç kuşak önce Rumeli denilirdi, şimdi Balkanlar yer adlandırmasını tercih ediyoruz. 26 Mart 2017.
- ^ "NATO's Secret Armies: Chronology". Parallel History Project on Cooperative Security (PHP). ETH Zurich. Archived from the original on 12 December 2008. Retrieved 5 July 2008.
- ^ Güçlü, Abbas (25 September 2003). "61 Anayasası Türkiye'ye büyük geldi". Milliyet (in Turkish). Retrieved 5 July 2008.
- ^ 1998 Report Archived 3 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine from the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT), chapter II, "SUSURLUK SCANDAL: Counter-guerilla Affairs", p.39-86 (see p.47)
- ^ Oran, Baskın; Evren, Kenan (1989). Kenan Evren'in yazılmamış anıları (in Turkish). Bilgi Yayınevi. p. 189. ISBN 975-494-095-9. Retrieved 5 July 2008.
Şimdi ben, bunu yakaladıktan sonra mahkemeye vereceğim ve ondan sonra da idam etmeyeceğim, ömür boyu ona bakacağım. Bu vatan için kanını akıtan, bu Mehmetçiklere silah çeken o haini ben senelerce besleyeceğim. Buna siz razı olur musunuz?
(3 October 1984 speech at Muş) - ^ "Evren, bu zalimliği yaptı mı?". www.sozcu.com.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved 13 December 2020.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Sarıipek, Mustafa (6 November 2006). "Evren: Tutukladığım için üzgünüm". Hürriyet (in Turkish). Retrieved 5 July 2008.
- ^ "Kenan Evren'e Suikast Yapacaklardı". Aktif Haber (in Turkish). 2 August 2006. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 5 July 2008.
- ^ "Kenan Evren'i Olumden Ezan Kurtardi". Haber Vitrini (in Turkish). 25 May 2004. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 5 July 2008.
- ^ "Evren: Kızım MİT'te çalışıyordu". Sabah (in Turkish). 8 September 2004. Archived from the original on 16 June 2009. Retrieved 13 December 2008.
- ^ "Evren: Pişman değilim". Radikal (in Turkish). Anadolu Agency, Dogan News Agency. 3 March 2006. Archived from the original on 22 May 2011. Retrieved 8 October 2008.
- ^ "Evren de yargılansın netekim!". Taraf (in Turkish). 28 July 2008. Archived from the original on 31 July 2008. Retrieved 28 July 2008.
- ^ Timur, Şafak (12 September 2008). "Debating justice for coup generals". Turkish Daily News. Archived from the original on 14 September 2008. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
- ^ BBC News Turkish ex-president Kenan Evren faces coup charge, 10 January 2012.
- ^ Habib Güler (2 April 2012). "Turkish gov't, parties becoming co-plaintiffs in Sept. 12 coup case". Today's Zaman. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
- ^ Suzan Fraser (18 June 2014). "1980 Coup Leaders Given Life Sentences in Turkey". ABC news. Associated Press. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
- ^ "Kenan Evren dies at 97; Turkish general led 1980 coup and became president". Washington Post. 9 May 2015. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
- ^ "Atatürk Uluslararası Barış Ödülü – AYK". www.ayk.gov.tr. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
- ^ "Kenan Evren Hastaneye Kaldırıldı (Kenan Evren Hospitalized)". haberler.com quoting Ankara Haber Ajansı (in Turkish). 3 August 2009. Retrieved 24 September 2009.
- ^ "Kenan Evren'e Geçici Kalp Pili Takıldı". haberler.com quoting Cihan Haber Ajansı (in Turkish). 3 August 2009. Retrieved 24 September 2009.
- ^ "Kalınbağırsağı Alındı, Durumu İyi". haberler.com (in Turkish). 14 August 2009. Retrieved 24 September 2009.
- ^ "No blessing' to Kenan Evren at funeral". Doğan News Agency. 12 May 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
External links[]
Media related to Kenan Evren at Wikimedia Commons
- 1917 births
- 2015 deaths
- 20th-century presidents of Turkey
- People from Alaşehir
- Presidents of Turkey
- Turkish Army generals
- Commanders of the Turkish Land Forces
- Chiefs of the Turkish General Staff
- Leaders who took power by coup
- Turkish anti-communists
- Operation Gladio
- Turkish Military Academy alumni
- Army War College (Turkey) alumni
- Balıkesir Lisesi alumni
- Recipients of the Olympic Order
- Turkish people of Albanian descent
- Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Turkey
- Deaths from organ failure
- Burials at Turkish State Cemetery
- Heads of government who were later imprisoned
- Fenerbahçe S.K. supporters