Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu recently unveiled a new set of regulations to bolster public order and give a freer hand to the security forces when they are faced with violent incidents. The catalyst was the so-called protest by Kurdish militants against the government's handling of the Kobani crisis in Syria, which turned into incidents of countrywide violence causing the deaths of 36 people and damage to property worth some $3 billion (TL 6.7 billion).Were these new tough measures really needed? Or were the existing laws sufficient to deal with the incidents? Was it simply a case of some people not performing their duties, thus allowing matters to get out of hand?The answer is yes and no.Yes, we did need extraordinary laws to deal with such extraordinary circumstances, created by people who were trying their best to sabotage the peace and reconciliation process between Ankara and Turkey's Kurds. Yes, the existing laws could be used to stop people wearing masks, throwing Molotov cocktails, burning buses, schools and shops and unleashing a wave of violence that has terrorized society.No, the existing laws could not have been effectively used, and for two reasons. One is the fact that the laws are ambiguous and allow prosecutors and judges to interpret the law differently and thus set free people throwing Molotov cocktails and covering the faces. These judges and prosecutors may well be acting in good faith or they may be followers of the Gülenist Movement and are actively perverting the course of justice in an attempt to damage the government. So a clear definition of what is a crime and what is not had to be made. In another twist related to this issue, we can also say that there are some policemen, who may be attached to the Gülen Movement, who neglected their duties to preserve public order and thus allowed matters to get out of hand.So the lesson that has to be learned from the recent violence is that the police force has to become a real police force that upholds law and order and does not take orders from various sources outside the government, like the Gülen Movement. That means the security forces have to do some spring cleaning. The same is valid for the judicial system.It is also concerning to hear claims that Turkey is sliding back to the old days of the 1990s when Kurds were on the rampage and the state was unable to deal with the violence. That is not true.It is clear the government is making an effort to reconcile with the Kurds (some of us may feel the effort is too sluggish) and that the aim is to end the Kurdish problem once and for all. The Kurds in the 1990s did not feel as if they were treated like first-class citizens of the Turkish Republic and they were fully justified in thinking so. This columnist, who is a Turk, went out of his way to defend Kurdish rights and paid a heavy price both financially and morally. It was well worth it.Today the picture is different. The government has done much to help the Kurds feel like first-class citizens of the Turkish Republic, so much so that now the Turks are starting to question their own status in this country.As a result, we are entitled to feel that our Kurdish brothers and sisters should start doing some soul searching and realize that when you start acting like a spoilt child, there is a degree of tolerance. But you shouldn't push your luck.Those who took to the streets, wreaked havoc, damaged public property and caused so much suffering have to realize that a backlash was inevitable. As a result, we now have the current draft law that brings new, tough measures: You reap what you sow.