 who chanted a slogan referencing the country’s secular founder while brandishing swords after their graduation ceremony on August 30, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Monday.){kind=link}
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has vowed to expel graduates of the Turkish Military Academy from the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) who chanted a slogan referencing the country’s secular founder while brandishing swords after their graduation ceremony on August 30, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Monday.
A group of newly commissioned officers were recorded chanting, “We are Mustafa Kemal’s soldiers,” while brandishing swords after the official ceremony had concluded. The slogan, which refers to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey and a staunch advocate of secularism, sparked controversy after videos of the event circulated on social media.
The incident, which took place in the presence of Erdoğan, quickly became a flashpoint in the country’s ongoing political and cultural tensions, with some praising the cadets for honoring Turkey’s founding principles, while others criticized the act as inappropriate for members of the military.
Pro-government figures accused the graduates of reviving “old coup-era sentiments” in a country that saw violent coups in 1960 and 1980. Erdoğan also survived an abortive putsch in 2016, following which the political strength of the military was drastically curtailed.
The Ministry of Defense has launched an investigation into the incident, warning that any personnel found to have violated military regulations would face disciplinary action.
Over a week after the incident, Erdoğan questioned the motives behind the sword display in a speech on Saturday, promising to expel the newly commissioned officers from the TSK.
“Recently, some abusers … brandished their swords during their graduation ceremony, an incident that is under investigation. A few unworthy individuals there will be cleared out. … Whether it’s 30 or 50 people, it is impossible for them to be in our army,” Erdoğan said, adding, “We will not allow political accounts to be settled through our military.”
Following Erdoğan’s threats, the company commander of the military school graduates, identified only as Major M., resigned from the TSK as a result of growing pressure on him, according to a report by the Hürriyet daily on Sunday.
Erdoğan’s harsh comments on the newly commissioned officers’ military chant drew strong reactions from opposition politicians and critics of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), on Sunday expressed his condemnation of the president’s efforts to divide society by bringing the issue back into the spotlight with his comments coming eight days after the graduation.
“It is impossible to understand such a harsh and intolerant attitude on an issue they can’t even agree on within their own party. … For those who don’t know, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk is a shared value of 86 million people [in Turkey],” the mayor said.
İmamoğlu, seen as the strongest political rival of Erdoğan, was referring to the comments of AKP Spokesperson Ömer Çelik, who expressed support for the military school graduates, saying that interpreting a chant aimed at showing respect for Atatürk as a message against Erdoğan is “unhealthy” and that insulting the military officers in this manner is “unacceptable.”
Democrat Party MP Cemal Enginyurt also criticized the president’s reaction to the secularist chant in a video he shared on X. He underlined that Erdoğan is reacting to a traditional slogan and gesture that he has been witnessing during military school graduations for years.
“We are also committing the same crime as those military officers by saying, ‘We are Mustafa Kemal’s soldiers.’ File a lawsuit against us, too, if you have the courage,” Enginyurt added.
Journalist İsmail Saymaz also said in a column on the Halk TV news website that the gesture with the swords has been officially included in graduation ceremonies since 1999.
“As Erdoğan has been running the country since 2002, he cannot have missed the sword [gesture] for 23 years. The real issue here is the slogan ‘We are soldiers of Mustafa Kemal,'” he added.
CHP leader Özgür Özel said in a statement to reporters on Monday that Erdoğan’s comments after remaining silent for eight days about the military ceremony were “telling.”
“If you are a friend of this regime, founded by … Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, why are you afraid of that sword? It is the enemies of the nation and the homeland who should be afraid of that sword,” Özel said, addressing the president.
