While demands for the reopening of military hospitals, which were closed following the coup attempt on July 15, 2016, have long been voiced on various platforms, MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli, —the ruling AKP's People's Alliance partner—voiced these demands, saying that the reopening of the hospitals is of vital importance.
However, the day after, his party and the AKP did not support a parliamentary move on the same issue made by the İYİ Party, and later the Defense Ministry announced that efforts to update the military healthcare system are ongoing.
Following the 2016 coup attempt, the government declared a state of emergency and dissolved military high schools as well as military hospitals through statutory decrees. In recent years, soldier casualties occurring especially during operations both domestically and in Northern Iraq and Syria have brought the need for these hospitals back to the political agenda.
Speaking at the MHP parliamentary group meeting on June 30, Bahçeli said: “How tragic it is that today, Turkey is the only country within NATO that does not have a military hospital. This situation is an unacceptable historical deficiency given the greatness and operational capability of our glorious army. The issue of reopening military hospitals and reintegrating them into the army is of vital value.”
The next day, while a bill regarding expert sergeants was being discussed in parliament, the İYİ Party proposed opening a general debate to discuss the reactivation of the Gülhane Military Medical Academy (GATA) and military hospitals across the country.
İYİ Party MP Ahmet Eşref Fakıbaba mentioned that they have been demanding the reopening of military hospitals for years and noted that they welcomed Bahçeli’s newfound support for the cause.
Zafer Party Chair Ümit Özdağ said that no state institution had ever been closed down in Ottoman history, adding: “Institutions are not closed down; institutions are reformed, and in this way, they are expected to survive. If we operate with a coup logic, we would have had to close down the Presidency as well, because FETÖ members (members of the Gülenist movement) were caught there too.”
The CHP’s Retired Rear Admiral Yankı Bağcıoğlu said that military hospitals are a crucial need and should be opened as soon as possible, and added: “It is impossible to understand using FETÖ as a justification for the decision to close the hospitals.”
In response to the opposition's remarks, AKP MP Hasan Arslan said that military hospitals were not closed but rather transferred to the Health Ministry and converted into civilian hospitals. He noted that structural changes could be evaluated by renegotiating the current system among the Health, Defense, and Interior ministries. Arslan added that he believes returning to the structure that was disrupted after the coup would weaken medical education.
The MHP group did not participate in the parliamentary vote, the AKP group voted against it, and the İYİ Party’s motion was rejected by a majority vote.
On the other hand, this political debate was brought up to the Defense Ministry officials during their weekly press conference on July 2. “In line with the directives given by our President, efforts are underway to update the military healthcare system in order to best meet the needs of the Turkish Armed Forces,” the Ministry said.
