MESOP : MADAME MERKEL’S FULL MEMBERSHIP PARTNERS

^{Originally published under the title, “Turkey’s Thugocracy.”}

Hurriyet columnist Ahmet Hakan (left) and the men who brutally beat him last week (right) shortly before all but one were released.

In 1908, the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP) took control of the Ottoman Empire and became increasingly autocratic, openly threatening its critics, especially journalists. In 1910, three prominent journalists who were leading opponents of the regime—Hasan Fehmi, Ahmet Samim, and Zeki Bey—were murdered. Several other journalists were beaten by thugs commissioned by the CUP.

When the CUP’s parliamentary majority eroded due to defections and by-elections, its leaders called for new elections in 1912 and dispatched baton-wielding thugs to intimidate voters. As a result, the CUP won 269 of 275 seats. Victory, however, did not bring good fortune to the party. Its leaders would eventually have to flee the country.

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