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Although Türkiye’s recent history bears the traces of several coups, the military takeover of Sept. 12, 1980, went down in history as one of the harshest blows to Turkish democracy and human rights. As a consequence of the coup, more than 650,000 people were detained, 230,000 faced political trials, 14,000 people lost their citizenship, 30,000 were dismissed from their jobs and 50 people were executed.
After the 1960 coup, the armed forces overthrew the Menderes government and executed Prime Minister Adnan Menderes and other ministers, Fatin Rüştü Zorlu and Hasan Polatkan. Türkiye then struggled with strong political divisions and entrenched civil-military ties. Under coalition governments in the following decades, political assassinations and hyperinflation dominated the national agenda. The social, political, and economic crises of the 1960s extended into the 1970s.
Leading up to the 1980 coup, Türkiye struggled to form a stable government. Multiple coalition administrations failed, leaving no single party in control. These frequent changes, combined with political instability, eroded public trust and credibility.
By the late 1970s, tensions across the country were escalating. Clashes between political factions, robberies, and kidnappings occurred daily. Anarchist groups exerted pressure on opposing political views, carrying out violent acts without regard for age or gender.
The economic crisis worsened the situation. Embargoes imposed by the West after Türkiye’s 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation limited access to basic goods, including oil, sugar, and gas. High inflation and limited domestic production further strained society.
The coup, planned months earlier by Chief of General Staff Kenan Evren and his aides, was code-named “Operation Flag.” Originally scheduled for July 11, the coup was postponed after the Süleyman Demirel government survived a vote of confidence.
Nevertheless, the putschists’ “National Security Council” eventually launched the coup in the early hours of Sept. 12, 1980. They suspended the constitution, dissolved Parliament, and shut down nongovernmental organizations. Political parties were banned, and top politicians, from Süleyman Demirel and Bülent Ecevit to Necmettin Erbakan and MHP leader Alparslan Türkeş, were exiled and barred from politics.
The first executions came on Oct. 9, 1980. Necdet Adalı, a left-wing activist accused of killing right-wing opponents, and Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu, a right-wing “ülkücü” (idealist) activist, were hanged the same day. Both were in their 20s and faced similar charges without substantial evidence. Their executions marked the putschists’ policy of treating ideological opponents “equally.” “We hanged one from the left and one from the right,” Evren later said, calling it an “unbiased” approach.
Among the executed leftists was 17-year-old Erdal Eren, accused of killing a military police officer before the coup. Despite two overturned death sentences by Türkiye’s highest judicial authority, the National Security Council ordered his execution. Though executing minors was illegal, authorities changed Eren’s age on his ID to justify the sentence. He was hanged in Ankara on Dec. 13, 1980. Evren notoriously defended the execution: “Should we not hang them but feed them, then?”
Evren and fellow surviving coup leader Tahsin Şahinkaya were tried in 2012 for their roles in the coup. Both were sentenced to life but never served prison time due to ill health, dying shortly afterward.
Coup’s fallout
Yalçın Topçu, now a presidential adviser, was among the coup’s victims. On the anniversary of the takeover, he recalled how his close friend, late politician Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu, endured continuous torture by the putschists.
Yazıcıoğlu, who died in a 2009 helicopter crash, was a prominent nationalist and founder of the Great Union Party (BBP), where Topçu briefly served as chairman. Topçu lost his teaching job during the crackdown on political activists. Yazıcıoğlu spent 10 years in prison but was ultimately acquitted. Topçu said he endured 26 days of torture during his first detention. “He was stripped naked and forced to stay that way while being tortured,” Topçu told Ihlas News Agency (IHA) on Thursday.
Topçu said he was a victim of both the 1980 and 1997 coups, losing public sector jobs due to past activism. “Many people were imprisoned without being charged. All were innocent, yet subject to torture. With one word from the putschists, people’s fate was sealed. Hundreds of thousands were jailed, and those behind it proudly said they did a good job hanging one from the left and one from the right,” he said.
He added that victims from both sides shared the same ideals. “They were intelligent, patriotic, and dreamed for their country and nation. If only we had the idealism of that youth today,” Topçu said. He recalled clashes between pre-coup activists: “We couldn’t share the same classrooms, cafeterias, or streets. In the end, we shared the same prison and the same cells.”
Topçu said the coups devastated idealist generations and harmed Türkiye’s economy, democracy, and future. “The only winners were those controlling the putschists,” he said, hinting at foreign influence, particularly from the U.S. He recalled nationalist leader Alparslan Türkeş, also imprisoned by the junta: “The worst form of democracy is better than a coup.”
