Eighteen questions

Let me initially state at once that transparent, fair and periodic elections are essential for DEMOCRACY, a NECESSARY condition, but never SUFFICIENT.

To enable a regime to be a DEMOCRACY, Fundamental Rights and Freedoms, most notably the freedom of opposition, expression and media, must absolutely but absolutely be guaranteed and this guarantee must be safeguarded by the Constitutional Court and independent judiciary. But, let me immediately add that, never mind the guaranteeing of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms and this guarantee being safeguarded by the independent judiciary, transparent, fair and periodic elections, the first condition of DEMOCRACY, cannot even be held in our country.

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This week in my “Up to date” column on my website, I listed ten (making an addition here to one of them) of the controversial issues relating to the election results that were weighing on my mind.

1) Were there interruptions and problems with political parties’ and civil society organisations’ internet connections and data flows?

2) Are there shortcomings in political parties’ and civil society organisations’ programmes for recording and conveying election results?

3) Are there inconsistencies in comparative numerical terms between Turkey’s population and voters rolls? Were a greater number of voters included on lists than the results attained from population figures?

4) Are there ballot boxes at which all voters voted without a single absence, from which no invalid votes emerged and all votes were cast for the ruling party, or at which more votes were cast than the number of registered voters? If so, where are they and how many are there?

5) Are there ballot boxes from among the ballot boxes that were moved to other places on security grounds at which diametrically opposite results emerged in terms of the previous elections, the most recent referendum and the election results?

6) Which human and digital resources and which configuration and programs was Anadolu Agency’s data flow and presentation conducted with?

7) Did the Supreme Election Council (SEC) provide political parties with data flow simultaneously?

8) What kind of relationship was there between the SEC’s data and the AA’s data in terms of speed and consistency? Is the allegation correct that the total number of ballot boxes was different and the results were changed by inventing certain “virtual ballot boxes?”

9) Can the SEC Chair proclaim Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to be the victor without objections having been adjudicated and the final results obtained? Is such a pronouncement not a crime?

10) In contrast to the great speed with which the unofficial results were announced by the SEC, to what is the failure for the final results to yet be announced attributable? What does “resting” the computers mean?

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The following could be added to the above ten technical questions, to one of which I made an addition:

1) To what extent were state resources used for ruling party canvassing?

2) To what extent did civil servants engage in canvassing and pressurisation for the ruling party?

3) Did provincial governors, sub-provincial governors, police chiefs and gendarmerie commanders engage in canvassing and pressurisation for the ruling party?

4) To what extent was equality and justice in canvassing achieved in the media?

5) To what extent does the newly enacted election law comply with the Constitution?

6) To what extent does the Constitutional Court having exempted all the actions and speech of one of the candidates, the President, from its oversight comply with the Rule of Law and Democracy?

7) To what degree is an election in which one of the candidates was imprisoned democratic?

8) Can elections embarked on in a state of emergency environment in which the ruling party has suspended all manner of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms be transparent and fair?

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Let us not forget the attack that started with the Ergenekon and Sledgehammer trials, was brought into the constitutional arena with the 12 September 2010 Referendum, continued with the 10 August presidential election and declaration of the state of emergency on 20 July 2016 and reached a peak with the 16 April 2017 Referendum.

The 24 June 2018 results are the work of this!

RESIST, FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS...

RESIST, RULE OF LAW...

RESIST, DEMOCRACY!

18 soru