Release of terror, coup suspects undermines trust in judiciary

According to several lawyers, justice has been suspended by the judiciary itself in order to save certain suspects from standing trial for the crimes they have committed. “I would not be made happy by anyone’s arrest, but I would not like to see those who committed a crime against the state and the nation go unpunished,” stated Erhan Şahin, head of the Denge Jurists’ Association in Konya.

    Erzincan Chief Public Prosecutor İlhan Cihaner was set free last week after a highly controversial ruling by the 11th Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals. The appeals court ruled to merge two ongoing cases against the chief prosecutor, though it lacked the necessary authority to do so. One of the trials, in which Cihaner stands accused of membership in a terrorist organization, was initially heard by the Erzurum 2nd High Criminal Court. The appeals court overstepped its authority and merged the case with a second case against the chief prosecutor, being heard at the Supreme Court of Appeals, in which he stands accused of abuse of power and falsifying documents.

    “The appeals court’s merger decision is not lawful. It is against the legal establishment and [legal] practices. Can you merge a divorce case with a criminal case? No, you cannot. You cannot merge a terror-related case with a case about an alleged abuse of power, either,” remarked Sinan Kılıçkaya, head of the Jurists’ Association. According to Kılıçkaya, the biased and unlawful approach of the Supreme Court of Appeals has caused a loss of confidence in the judiciary in Turkey.

    He also recalled a devious plan by senior judges to save Cihaner from prison. A phone conversation between Supreme Court of Appeals judges Yaver Aktan and Fatih Arkan revealed that the chief prosecutor’s release from prison was in the hands of the 11th Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals.

He also recalled a devious plan by senior judges to save Cihaner from prison. A phone conversation between Supreme Court of Appeals judges Yaver Aktan and Fatih Arkan revealed that the chief prosecutor’s release from prison was in the hands of the 11th Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals.

“I told Ersan Ülker [the head of the chamber] that he will be the head of the Supreme Court of Appeals if he ensures this [Cihaner’s release]. I told him that there are three candidates for this position, Abdurrahman Yalçınkaya [the chief prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals], Kadir Özbek [Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) Vice President] and you. I told this to each of them. The one who achieves this will win,” Aktan is heard saying in the recording.

“Phone conversations that made their way to the media hinted that we would go through this. They put their plan into operation, though they knew fully that the public was aware of it. I am reminded of the next step in their plan by the cover-up of the Ergenekon case,” Kılıçkaya added.

Last week’s scandalous court decision included more than just the release of Cihaner from prison. Twelve suspects in the case on the Sledgehammer Security Operation Plan, believed to be an attempt to overthrow the government through a subversive plan, were set free. Among the suspects released were National Security Council (MGK) Secretary-General Şükrü Sarıışık. He was arrested in April on charges of working to overthrow the government. Fourteen others were released from prison two weeks ago.

“The law has been suspended. Turkey is witnessing a serious display of injustice. We are really worried,” stated Hasan Hüseyin Tanrıverdi, president of the Universal Jurists’ Platform.

The platform filed a criminal complaint in February against the individuals who allegedly prepared and were to implement the suspected Sledgehammer coup plan. The complaint stressed that those who prepared the plan or were ordered to prepare such a plan, those who put it into practice and those who ignored its preparation are suspects and should be tried.

The Sledgehammer coup plan, an almost 5,000-page document exposed by the Taraf daily in January, was reportedly approved at a military meeting in 2003, attended by 162 active duty members of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), including 29 generals. According to the plan, allegedly drafted by retired Gen. Çetin Doğan, the military was to systematically foment chaos in society through violent acts that would lead to a military takeover. The plan suggested bombing mosques during Friday prayers, when the greatest number of people would gather, and deliberately shooting down a Turkish warplane in the Aegean Sea in order create tension between Turkey and Greece, with the intent to undermine the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in the eyes of the public.

“The Supreme Court of Appeals decisions have shown that some plans are currently in operation, just as they were planned months ago. Any conscientious citizen of Turkey should react to those plans. I strongly condemn the appeals court’s decisions [leading to the release of terror and coup suspects]. Cronyism is widespread in the Turkish judiciary. Who can the nation trust other than the judiciary?” Tanrıverdi asked.

Claims of nepotism in the higher judiciary emerged in early June after the wiretap recordings of a former justice minister, who is currently under detention, made their way to the media. According to the wiretaps, obtained legally, many judges and prosecutors asked ex-Minister Seyfi Oktay to have themselves appointed to higher positions in the judiciary. The minister conveyed their requests to HSYK, as a result of which hundreds of judges and prosecutors were appointed to higher positions.