Melek Çetinkaya, whose son Taha Furkan Çetinkaya received a life sentence as a military cadet after Turkey’s July 15, 2016 coup attempt, was cut off during a live program on pro-government Akit TV after questioning why former military personnel who served during earlier coups later held senior state posts.
Çetinkaya appeared on Pazar Manşeti, hosted by Fatin Dağıstanlı on the government-aligned channel Akit TV.
She has been one of the most visible advocates for military cadets who received life sentences in post-coup trials.
Their families say the cadets were students under military command, did not plan or direct a coup and were punished for obeying orders from superiors.
During the program, Çetinkaya referred to Turkey’s Sept. 12, 1980 military coup and cited former Chief of General Staff Hulusi Akar and former Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım as examples.
“No military cadet or ordinary soldier had ever been tried for taking part in a coup before,” Çetinkaya said. “Hulusi Akar was a first lieutenant in the previous coup. Binali Yıldırım was an ensign. You say those who take part in a coup are traitors to the homeland. Then why did Hulusi Akar become a minister and Binali Yıldırım become prime minister?”
Akar, who was chief of General Staff during the 2016 coup attempt, later became defense minister.
Yıldırım served as prime minister at the time of the coup attempt.
Dağıstanlı interrupted Çetinkaya after her remarks.
“You are not prosecuted when it succeeds,” he said. “You are prosecuted when it fails.”
The program ended after that exchange.
Çetinkaya’s remarks pointed to one of the main complaints raised by families of military cadets convicted after July 15: that young students were treated as coup plotters while senior officials and commanders escaped the same level of scrutiny.
The cadet cases became among the most disputed proceedings after the coup attempt.
Families argued that the students were taken out under orders, were not told they were participating in a coup and had no authority to decide where they were sent.
The exchange on Akit TV drew attention because it took place on a channel that had strongly supported the government’s post-coup narrative.
Çetinkaya used the live broadcast to ask why ordinary students received life sentences while figures who had served in the military during previous coup periods later rose to high office.
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