The two civilians are the justice minister and his undersecretary. The juristocrats are said to be pushing for a “swapping of places of duty” for the judges and prosecutors of several critical courts. These include the prosecutors of the infamous Ergenekon case, cases relating to murders by unknown assailants and cases on the Kurdish Democratic Confederation (KCK). The public is curious: Why is the HSYK assuming the role of a stumbling block each and every time a critical case is opened for the advancement of democracy in the country? The HSYK has a tradition of intervening in prosecution of cases filed against military personnel. We know at least two prosecutors who were unemployed and banned from public offices by the HSYK just because they were courageous enough to press a case against army personnel.There is something wrong here.
According to the HSYK's juristocrats, they are the ones who have been wronged. They claim that a media “campaign” against certain members of the board (in fact, only one) is harming the trustworthiness and independence of the judiciary. “We are shown as targets,” the president of the board said last week, criticizing new items that appeared in major newspapers of the country.
According to the democrats, the HSYK is the wrongdoer. The judges on the supreme board are in fact working into the hands of militarists, Ergenekon suspects and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), they claim. At least one member of the board is in constant contact with members of the Ergenekon organization, HSYK critics claim. Photographs of this person were in fact published in newspapers showing him visiting a certain Ergenekon suspect.
So which of the two is true? Both are!
The HSYK is indeed losing its trustworthiness. Not only is it damaging its own credibility, it is also harming the image of the general judicial apparatus of the country. There is a “campaign” against the illegal, unconstitutional, illogical and unacceptable plot prepared by the HSYK member(s) to displace prosecutors of the Ergenekon and KCK cases. But this campaign is quite peaceful and constructive. HSYK critics are not asking the judges to step down; they are asking them to abide by the rule of law and rules of democratic governance. This accounts for protecting the image of the board, not the opposite.
The judicial apparatus has to be just and has to appear just. It is not enough for a judge to be just. He or she has to show the general public that the system is working and the decisions they are making are in fact justified. The HSYK is at present doing neither. Their will to replace the prosecutors of an ongoing court case is neither acceptable nor are they pretending to be just. They seem to be “happily illegal.”
And I am happily creating conspiracies about this board; happily and without any tangible truth in my hand. I say: “This HSYK has in fact been penetrated by members of the Ergenekon and they have been serving the aims of this terrorist organization for some time. Nepotism is widespread in the judiciary and the HSYK is the only one to blame. The members of the HSYK were brainwashed some time during their university education to be unquestioning members of the board. They are voluntarily continuing the Feb. 28 and April 27 traditions of the army within judicial lines. The ‘juristocrats' are in fact ‘ununiformed soldiers'.”
Whereas the conspiracy smells dirty, the foul smells coming from the board makes it acceptable.
