 MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli. DAILY NEWS photo, Selahattin SÖNMEZ |
The leader of an opposition party called on the justice minister and interior minister to resign over a recent judicial debate Tuesday, while the main opposition party leader compared the prime minister to an Ottoman sultan.
Devlet Bahçeli, the leader of the Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, blamed the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, for the release of criminals following the enforcement of Article 102 of the Criminal Procedure Code, or CMK, saying, “The government is trying to use the dead end the judiciary is in today to perform an operation on the judiciary.”
An amendment to the article limiting arrest periods resulted in the release of many suspects, sparking debate over the speed of the judicial process in Turkey.
Bahçeli, speaking during Tuesday parliamentary group meetings, then called on Interior Minister Beşir Atalay and Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin to resign for handing over the country to outlaws before disengaging themselves from the process.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan needs to hold meetings with the president of the Supreme Court of Appeals in order to find a solution, the MHP leader said.
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP, meanwhile, compared Erdoğan to Ottoman Sultan Murat IV (r. 1623 to 1640), who was known for the brutality of his methods.
The ruling party has spent eight years trying to set up its own cadre in public offices instead of trying to solve the issues in the judiciary, Kılıçdaroğlu said. He also blamed the AKP for the recent release of suspected members of the outlawed Turkish Hizbullah, which is unrelated to the Lebanese organization of the same name.
Kılıçdaroğlu continued his speech at his party’s group meeting Tuesday by stating that the ruling AKP had failed to combat poverty, corruption and bans. The CHP leader also promised a fierce fight after the elections if his party comes to power.
The AKP has failed to alleviate poverty even though their election campaign was based on it, said Kılıçdaroğlu, adding that more than 800,000 Turkish citizens were living in poverty and arguing that AKP members were only thinking of themselves and their supporters.
The AKP has also done the opposite of fighting bans, said the CHP leader, pointing out that new laws even gave the prime minister the right to stop broadcasts of television programs deemed unfit. “Even Murat IV had no such authority. They’re turning Turkey into a country of bans under the guise of fighting bans.”
BDP: ‘Judiciary has collapsed’
Peace and Democracy Party, or BDP, leader Selahattin Demirtaş said the judiciary and the government had manufactured the prisoner release issue hand in hand, adding that Turkey was “bothered by the results.”
Instating the Intermediate Courts of Appeal would prevent criminals from being released from prison, said Demirtaş, adding that the AKP had already released 1,030 Hizbullah members and was now releasing Hizbullah leaders.
Demirtaş also said there were other prisoners, such as Süleyman Kaya and Faruk Menekşe, who were still in prison despite being in prison without a conviction for over 10 years.
“The judicial system in Turkey has collapsed,” said Demirtaş. “No one can speak of judicial trust until we are rid of the AKP government.”
Demirtaş also echoed Kılıçdaroğlu’s comparison of Erdoğan to a sultan, adding that the prime minister was a separatist and that democratic sovereignty would be the best system for the country.
Devlet Bahçeli, the leader of the Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, blamed the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, for the release of criminals following the enforcement of Article 102 of the Criminal Procedure Code, or CMK, saying, “The government is trying to use the dead end the judiciary is in today to perform an operation on the judiciary.”
An amendment to the article limiting arrest periods resulted in the release of many suspects, sparking debate over the speed of the judicial process in Turkey.
Bahçeli, speaking during Tuesday parliamentary group meetings, then called on Interior Minister Beşir Atalay and Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin to resign for handing over the country to outlaws before disengaging themselves from the process.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan needs to hold meetings with the president of the Supreme Court of Appeals in order to find a solution, the MHP leader said.
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP, meanwhile, compared Erdoğan to Ottoman Sultan Murat IV (r. 1623 to 1640), who was known for the brutality of his methods.
The ruling party has spent eight years trying to set up its own cadre in public offices instead of trying to solve the issues in the judiciary, Kılıçdaroğlu said. He also blamed the AKP for the recent release of suspected members of the outlawed Turkish Hizbullah, which is unrelated to the Lebanese organization of the same name.
Kılıçdaroğlu continued his speech at his party’s group meeting Tuesday by stating that the ruling AKP had failed to combat poverty, corruption and bans. The CHP leader also promised a fierce fight after the elections if his party comes to power.
The AKP has failed to alleviate poverty even though their election campaign was based on it, said Kılıçdaroğlu, adding that more than 800,000 Turkish citizens were living in poverty and arguing that AKP members were only thinking of themselves and their supporters.
The AKP has also done the opposite of fighting bans, said the CHP leader, pointing out that new laws even gave the prime minister the right to stop broadcasts of television programs deemed unfit. “Even Murat IV had no such authority. They’re turning Turkey into a country of bans under the guise of fighting bans.”
BDP: ‘Judiciary has collapsed’
Peace and Democracy Party, or BDP, leader Selahattin Demirtaş said the judiciary and the government had manufactured the prisoner release issue hand in hand, adding that Turkey was “bothered by the results.”
Instating the Intermediate Courts of Appeal would prevent criminals from being released from prison, said Demirtaş, adding that the AKP had already released 1,030 Hizbullah members and was now releasing Hizbullah leaders.
Demirtaş also said there were other prisoners, such as Süleyman Kaya and Faruk Menekşe, who were still in prison despite being in prison without a conviction for over 10 years.
“The judicial system in Turkey has collapsed,” said Demirtaş. “No one can speak of judicial trust until we are rid of the AKP government.”
Demirtaş also echoed Kılıçdaroğlu’s comparison of Erdoğan to a sultan, adding that the prime minister was a separatist and that democratic sovereignty would be the best system for the country.
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