Today in History – 18/19 April

“Not even I can save you”

On April 12, 1960, the Democratic Party (DP) Group published a notice and accused the Republican People’s Party (CHP) of organizing “armed and staged revolts” and some media institutions of backing these events with falsified news. Subsequently, an Investigation Council comprised of 15 DP deputies was set up on April 18, 1960 at the Grand National Assembly.
The Council, which was to investigate the actions of the opposition party and the press, had a broad authority that included the prohibition of political meetings, censorship, and the closing of newspapers and printing houses. Anyone challenging the decision of the Council would be sentenced to prison.

The day the Investigation Council was established, İsmet İnönü delivered an important speech at the Assembly. ?nönü stressed that he and his party CHP transitioned from revolution to democracy, that it would be impossible for them to instigate a revolution, that such a commission had no room in a democracy and was therefore “illegitimate,” and that it would lead to a period of pressure over the Grand National Assembly. The following famous words of the eminent politician were recorded in the minutes of the Assembly:

It is a dangerous thing to steer the country away from the direction of a democratic regime and towards a rule of oppression. If you continue along this path, not even I can save you.

The publication of this address was immediately prohibited. Although it never appeared in newspapers, it was multiplied by mimeographs and typewriters, and distributed across the entire country.