Extension of emergency rule in Turkey gives Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan more time to systematically eliminate any opposition to his rule, according to Ankara native Evren Celik Wiltse, an assistant professor of political science at South Dakota State University who was in Turkey this summer. “The idea that he is protecting Turkish democracy is ludicrous—what he’s doing jeopardizes democracy.”

That Erdogan went after those associated with the religious network, known as the Gulenists, whose members were responsible for the coup attempt is understandable, Wiltse explained. But his use of this power to target the media, judiciary, national police, military, teachers, academia and the bureaucracy paints an ominous picture. Nearly 10,000 of the teachers targeted were members of the progressive, leftist Egitim-Sen Union, a secular group that opposes the Gulenist network. Furthermore, some of the newspapers, journals, TV and radio stations shut down had nothing to do with the Gulenists, but were staunchly secular, progressive, left leaning, or pro-Kurdish. Those who face Erdogan’s furry include card-carrying atheists, well-known socialists, peace activists, and public intellectuals who seek a resolution to the Kurdish conflict--and the Kurds themselves. “Democracies cannot fight injustices with more injustice,” Wiltse pointed out. “If Turkey does not swiftly end its emergency rule and establish a system based on transparency, rule of law and due process, its seriously bruised regime may never recover to become a democracy.” She can be reached 605-688-4311 or [email protected]. You can follow her on Twitter at @EvrenWiltse.

Wiltse earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Bogazici University in Istanbul, Turkey, and her doctorate degree from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. She is the 2015-16 Daschle Research Fellow at SDSU, working on the NAFTA at Twenty project. Her latest book, “Democratic Reform and Consolidation: the cases of Mexico and Turkey,” was released in 2015 by Colchester: ECPR Press.