Political violence in Turkey (1976–80)

Political violence in Turkey (1976–1980)

Date	1976–1980
Location	Turkey
Result	1980 Turkish coup d'état Low level insurgency started

Belligerents

Right-wing groups:

Grey Wolves (MHP)

Left-wing groups:

TKP/ML (TİKKO)

THKO

Devrimci Yol

Commanders and leaders

Mahir Çayan †
Others

Strength

Casualties and losses

1,296

2,109

Total 5,388 killed, affiliation of 1,983 victims unknown.

Political violence in Turkey became a challenging problem in late 1970s. The violence was even described as a "low-level war". The death squads of Turkish right-wing ultra-nationalist groups against left-wing opposition inflicted some 5,000 casualties. The wave of violence dimmed after the 1980 Turkish coup d'état.

In 1975 Süleyman Demirel, president of the conservative Justice Party (Turkish: Adalet Partisi, AP) succeeded Bülent Ecevit, president of the social-democratic Republican People's Party (Turkish: Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi, CHP) as Prime Minister. He formed a coalition called "the Nationalist Front (Turkish: Milliyetçi Cephe)" with Necmettin Erbakan's Islamist National Salvation Party (Turkish: Millî Selamet Partisi, MSP), and Alparslan Türkeş' far right Nationalist Movement Party (Turkish: Milliyetçi Hareket Partisi, MHP). The MHP used the opportunity to infiltrate state security services, seriously aggravating the low-intensity war that was waging between rival factions.

The elections of 1977 had no winner. First, Demirel continued the coalition with the Nationalist Front, but in 1978, Ecevit was able to get to power again with the help of some deputies who had shifted from one party to another. In 1979, Demirel once again became Prime Minister. At the end of the 1970s, Turkey was in an unstable situation with unsolved economic and social problems facing strike actions and partial paralysis of politics (the Grand National Assembly of Turkey was unable to elect a President during the six months preceding the coup). Since 1968–69, a proportional representation system had made it difficult to find any parliamentary majority. The interests of the industrial bourgeoisie, which held the largest holdings of the country, were opposed by other social classes such as smaller industrialists, traders, rural notables, and landlords, whose interests did not always coincide among themselves. Numerous agricultural and industrial reforms requested by parts of the middle upper classes were blocked by others. Henceforth, the politicians seemed unable to combat the growing violence in the country.

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