The night of July 15 will go down in history as one of the longest nights in Turkish political history. Turkish people, who were tested harshly that night, passed with flying colors and proved their political coming of age, while at the same time protecting democracy and the national will. In Prime Minister Yildirim's words, "The ones trying to hit the nation were hit themselves" and the public literally defeated the coup plotters. Different segments of the people provided serious support to the government security forces and political and bureaucratic institutions that were defending the law against pro-coup troops, police and civilians. The public helping them resist the coup plotters effectively.
People opposed the military coup regardless of their political, social, cultural, ideological, ethnic, and gender identities. They demonstrated an impressive unity, solidarity, integrity, and awareness. They took action in protecting their country and government, and thus sealed their own fate in the end.Turkish society prevented the coup by showing an effective resistance and by making unprecedented history.
Turkish people lash out only when it comes to the fate of their homeland and state. They put aside their differences in an impulse to protect their country, and did not allow the emergence of a despotic regime. For this reason, what happened on the night of July 15 could be compared to the Kuva-yi Milliye era. People rushed to the streets to determine their own fate, with the call of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the highest level legitimate representative of the state. The people who stepped in without fear or any plan a hundred years ago, stepped in once more on July 15 and protected their own will.
This resistance was not a result of a party or a government's efforts to maintain their rule. It was rather a response beyond political parties. On this occasion, the distant attitudes between different groups in our country were eliminated to a great extent. Large segments of the population prevented the coup by protecting the state's strategic institutions at the expense of their lives. Secondly, this resistance is an indication that the Turkish people are also political actors. With this resistance, the Turkish people refused to play their pre-assigned role. Conversely, this resistance was not welcomed by those who want Turkey to be colonized, or by those who do not wish Turkey to be an effective force in the region.
An Epic Resistance
From Turkey's east to west and south to north, people gathered in the streets and venues in every city. Turks, Kurds, Laz and Circassians, the young and the elderly, men and women, secular and religious... Everyone joined the resistance.They came together with a common discourse: protecting the national will; the sacred, state authority; democracy and law. The resistance of the Turkish people, which integrated with all institutions and segments, made a significant contribution to the consolidation of democracy in the country.
When you watch the footage from that night, you may recognize particular segments of the population that are ignored by some, as well as the political priorities of the people of Anatolia. What triggered all of these segments was to have the last word on their coutry's future and protect the future of their homeland.
Non-governmental organizations that represent different segments of society, think tanks, political parties and media outlets all came together to prevent the coup. This is such a valuable point. That's why this heroic resistance should not only be attributed to one group of people. To be able to show such unity in difficult times in the social and political developments of the future, necessary discourse must be improved. Shared values and the consciousness of nationhood must be insistently emphasized.
We must remember that any coup, from the outside and inside, can't harm a nation that is unified and shares the same discourse. To prevent a similar coup attempt that was clearly backed by external actors, the feeling of unity among people must be kept alive and we must prevent Turkey from drifting into a chaos and civil war like other countries in the region.This unity, solidarity, and cohesion in the community must be developed further. This unity on a social level must be continued on an academic and political level against the attempted coup and such undemocratic activities that directly affect the country's fate.
