Council of State President Mustafa Birden has for the first time made a statement on the fate of the missing camera footage -- allegedly deleted by the OYAK Security Company -- since the controversy arose nearly two weeks ago when a report by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) revealed that security camera records at the Council of State, where a senior judge was killed in an armed attack in 2006, had been deliberately destroyed after the assault. The OYAK Security Company, a private company affiliated with the military, was in charge of security at the Council of State.Birden was speaking at a ceremony yesterday marking the 142nd anniversary of the Council of State at his institution’s conference hall. In his speech, he also criticized the government’s constitutional reform package, which introduces major changes to two higher judicial organs, stating that the reforms would worsen the problems of the judiciary rather than solve them.
“Constitutional [changes] that have been passed hastily and based on the opinion of the majority rather than pluralism, as should be the case in a democracy, will not solve any issues, but will exacerbate existing problems,” he said.
President Abdullah Gül, Constitutional Court President Haşim Kılıç, Supreme Court of Appeals President Hasan Gerçeker, Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin, Interior Minister Beşir Atalay, Supreme Court of Appeals Chief Prosecutor Abdurrahman Yalçınkaya, Constitutional Court Deputy President Osman Paksüt, Higher Election Board (YSK) head Ali Em, members of the high courts and various other bureaucrats participated in the ceremony.
Birden said that he was saddened by recent criticism by high-level politicians and state administrators regarding some Council of State rulings, saying the court is a reputable institution with an honorable history of 142 years that has contributed greatly to the development of the rule of law in Turkey. He said the number of individuals using such an unworthy and careless style in criticizing the high court was increasing.
In addition to sharing his views on criticism directed at the Council of State, he also slammed the government’s constitutional amendment package, which includes changes to the makeup of the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) and the Constitutional Court. He described the package as an attempt by the legislative branch to dominate the sphere of the judiciary. He said the changes would jeopardize the independence of the courts.
