No more coups, no more polarization

The first anniversary of the bloody July 15, 2016, coup attempt is being marked in week-long events across the country, with major activities slated to take place over the weekend, particularly in Ankara and Istanbul, two of Turkey's largest cities heavily targeted by the coup plotters on that night. 

Commemorating the coup attempt is necessary and important in order to make sure that the future of Turkey will be immune to such undemocratic interventions. 

It's also crucial to look into the root causes of the coup attempt from a more objective perspective so that we do not fool ourselves. That's the only way to turn such a heinous attack on our country into an opportunity to re-promote democracy, the rule of law and human rights. This obliges a mutual understanding on the basis of culture of compromise between political parties with different world views and ideologies. 

In this regard, accusations directed at the opposition parties, the Republican People's Party (CHP) and the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), for acting in cooperation with terror organizations are not helpful for a united country. 

In an interview with the BBC, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accused the main opposition CHP of siding with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and of denying the spirit of unity in Turkey. "They have always been separatists. And the main opposition has acted with the terrorist organization," Erdoğan said. 

This categorization of the main opposition comes just a week after Erdoğan labeled HDP co-leader Selahattin Demirtaş, who has been arrested since October 2016 but not convicted, a terrorist. 

CHP is the second largest political party and the HDP is the third largest, representing nearly one fourth...