Dr. Çetiner’s Blogs (Dr. Beytullah Gültekin Çetiner)

AK Party Case Resolved
AK Party Case was resolved in Turkey. Turkish Democracy is the winner.

Court Rejects Demand to ban Ruling AK Party
The Case regarding ruling AK Party in Turkey has been decided 10 minutes ago. The Supreme Constitutional Court of Turkey rejected the demand to ban Ruling AK Party.

Turkey’s top court warns AKP, but rules not to close the ruling party
Turkey’s Constitutional Court rejects demands to close the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in its critical ruling released on Wednesday. A closure case was filed against the ruling party in March on claims that it became the focal point of anti-secular activities.

Turkey’s Constitutional Court rejects demands to close the governing AKP in its critical ruling released on Wednesday. A closure case was filed against the ruling party in March on claims that it became the focal point of anti-secular activities.

Six members voted in favor of closing the party, the court chairman told at a press conference. Hasim Kilic said he voted against the closure, while the remaining four members of the court said the AKP has shown signs of being a focal point of anti-secular activities but not in an extent to deserve to be closed. At least seven members must vote in favor for a party closure.

“Six members of the Constitutional Court voted for closure of the political party while four others voted for depriving the party of the financial assistance of the Treasury instead of its dissolution. Accordingly, the AKP will be deprived of the financial assistance with an amount of half of the last assistance,” he said.

Kilic said the court decided to cut financial aid to the party. He added “a serious warning” given to the AKP. He urged political parties to make the necessary legal arrangements to avoid any further party closure cases.

AKP has become the 18th political party to avoid closure by the Constitutional Court in Turkey.

Top court rejects closing AK Party
Turkey’s Constitutional Court rejects demands to close the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in its critical ruling released on Wednesday.

A New Chapter in Democracy
A New Chapter was opened in Turkey for Turkish Democracy. As we called this as an Exercise for Turkish Democracy.

A closure case was filed against the ruling party in March on claims that it became the focal point of anti-secular activities.

Turkey’s Constitutional Court rejects demands to close the governing AKP in its critical ruling released on Wednesday.

A closure case was filed against the ruling party in March on claims that it became the focal point of anti-secular activities.

Six members voted in favor of closing the party, while five voted against, the court chairman told at a press conference.

At least seven members must vote in favor for a party closure.

Hasim Kilic said the court decided to cut financial aid to the party.

He added “a serious warning” given to the AK Party.

He urged political parties to make the necessary legal arrangements to avoid any further party closure cases.

Turkish First lady interviewed by The Times
Hayrunnisa Gul, the wife of President Abdullah Gul, underlined in an interview with an English newspaper that it is her head she covers with the Islamic headscarf — not her brain.
Hayrunnisa Gul, the wife of Turkish President Abdullah Gul, underlined in an interview with an English newspaper that it is her head she covers with the Islamic headscarf — not her brain.

The first lady, who was interviewed by Janice Turner of UK daily The Times, said she did not believe headscarves should be forced on women.

“To me, women should not be forced to wear headscarves. It would be hard to find anyone in İstanbul who would disagree with me, at least in public,” Mrs. Gul was quoted as saying.

Gul’s interview was published yesterday in Times2, The Times’ main supplement, which features various lifestyle columns.

The headscarf issue is a topic of fierce debate in Turkey, where wearing the Islamic headscarf is banned in the public sphere.

Its use at universities was prohibited in the late 1990s through an earlier ruling by the Constitutional Court on the grounds that it would violate the nation’s secular principles, as the headscarf was seen as a political and religious symbol.

It was stressed in the Times2 article that the headscarf, worn by a considerable portion of Turkish women, means more in Turkey than in any other country.

“It has become the most potent symbol of a battle for the soul of the country that will determine its place in Europe and the Islamic world,” the article stated.

The article also recalled a closure case filed against Turkey’s ruling party.

“Despite the solid parliamentary majority that enabled her husband [Abdullah Gul] to become president, the country’s Constitutional Court is determined to press ahead with a case intended to outlaw the ruling Justice and Development Party [AK Party] and ban its leading members from politics,” it said.

A top prosecutor requested in March that Turkey’s Constitutional Court close the governing AK Party and place a ban on political party involvement for 71 of its high-level officials, including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Gul, who was an AK Party member before becoming president and severing political ties as required by the Constitution.

It was also expressed in the article that Western governments must see this case for what it is — an attempted judicial coup.

“It has scant legal basis. If successful it would derail Turkey’s already fraught EU accession and lead many AK Party supporters to despair of the ballot box,” the article read.

Book: Ak Party’s Response to the Indictment
Ak Party has made the official defense against the Constitutional Court yesterday for the closure case. Ak party has published the “Ak Party’s Response to the Indictment” as a book in English. Ak party had recently announced the recent case as ‘Google Case’. You can find the the claim Google Case in formal manner in related chapters of the book ‘Ak Party’s Response to the Indictment’.

You can get the copy of book from here. The book contains the following chapters.

BOOK: Ak Party’s Response to the Indictment

I. THIS CASE IS POLITICAL, NOT LEGAL
1. In General
2. The Political/Ideological Language of the Indictment
II. FREEDOM OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND ITS LIMITS IN DEMOCRACIES
1. Democracy and Political Parties
2. Universal Standards in the Banning of Political Parties
3. The Banning of Political Parties in Turkey
III. THE CASE LACKS A LEGAL BASIS
1. In This Case the Conditions for Becoming a “Center” do not Exist
2. Our Party Has Committed No Acts Nor Used any Rhetoric Against
Secularism
2.1 The AK Party’s Understanding of Secularism
2.2 Secularism, the Headscarf and Freedom of Expression
2.2.1 Freedom to Wear Headscarves in Universities is Required by the Right to
Individual Autonomy and Freedom
2.2.2 Remarks Regarding Freedom of Dress are Within the Context of Freedom of
Expression
2.2.3 Constitutional Amendments That Are Legislative Activities Cannot Be
Claimed to Be Anti-Secular
3 The AK Party President’s Statements Are Within the Framework of Freedom of
Expression
4 Similar Remarks to the Ones Noted in the Indictment or Even Stronger Ones
Were Made by Various Other Political Leaders
Statements of CHP President Deniz Baykal
Statements of Former Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit
Statements of former Prime Minister Mesut Yılmaz: (Annex-9)
MHP President Devlet BAHÇELİ: (Annex-11)
Former Prime Minister and President Süleyman Demirel’s Statements
5 Defending Children’s Freedom of Religious Education Is Not Against
Secularism
6 Defending a Change in University Entry Eligibility Status for Vocational
Schools is not Against Secularism
7 The State Initiative to Educate Poor Students in Private Schools is Not Against
Secularism
8 Votes and Remarks Made Within the Scope of Legislative Immunity cannot be
Used as Evidence
9 Remarks Made Before the Establishment of the Party Would not Bind It
10 It is not Possible to Attribute to the Party Statements and Actions of Public
Employees Who are Non-members
11 The Neutral President Cannot be Included in a Political Party Case
12 Statements of the TGNA Speaker cannot be Used as Evidence
13 The “Possibility of Violence” Claim in the Indictment is totally a Product of
Imagination.
14 The Foreign Policy of the AK Party Government is Not Unconstitutional
IV. THE INDICTMENT IS COMPOSED OF WRONG INFORMATION, DISTORTIONS AND FICTION
1. The Prime Minister’s New Straits Times Interview Has Been Distorted
2. The Unverified News Reports Have Been Used
3. The Language of the Constitution Has Been Altered
4. For Procedural Reasons The Main Opposition Party Cannot Have
Demanded Review of the Constitutional Amendments
5. The Concept of “Religious Community” is not New to the Legal System
6. The Clause of “Reserving Space for Prayer for Patients” Has been in Effect
for Ten Years
7. Only Repetitive Provisions Have Been Deleted from the Council of
Educational Policy Council Regulation
8. Personnel Assigned to the Educational Policy Council Are Not Members of a
Single Labor Union
9. The Allegation of Partisan Staffing is Groundless
10 Inclusion of Statements of Party Members Subjected to Disciplinary
Investigation in the Indictment is Not Acceptable
11. Statements Later Corrected or Found to Be Totally Baseless Are Included
as Evidence
12. Remarks and Activities Disavowed by Party Officials Are Being Used to
Serve as Evidence For the Claim of Being a ‘Center’.
SUMMARY AND REQUEST

Google Logo for International Justice Day
As you know, Google is opened with a different logo on special days such as Fathers Day, Teachers Day etc.

The following logo created in Turkiye suggested Google that Google can use this logo for Turkish users (for searches from google.com.tr) on International Justice Day. It is presented to Google free of charge.

Note: The logo carries the picture of Chief Prosecutor of Turkey with a stick in one hand to represent the letter ‘l’ in Google.

Constitutional Court Decision for AKP

The Constitutional Court Decision for AKP came yesterday.
The Constitutional Court unanimously decided to hear the case against the AK Party on charges that the ruling party of Turkey has been involved in anti-secularist activities and has followed a fundamentalist agenda. The party risks closure and its senior members including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan risk a five year political ban.

Some people in Turkey are trying to portray the case as a normal judicial act which may or may not result in the closure of the party. They say the legal system is now at work and we have to trust the independence of the judiciary.

We beg to differ especially after seeing the attitudes of some supreme court judges who seem to be bent on closing down the party.

These are the very same judges who last year in May decided to annul the elections of the new president claiming the parliament needed a quorum of 367 deputies to even open the sessions to elect the head of state whereas this was later regarded as a judicial scandal.

Now the same judges all appointed by the former president Ahmet Necdet Sezer on Monday decided that while the Supreme Court should hear the case against the AK Party President Abdullah Gul should also be brought to trial for his alleged anti-secular activities when he was foreign minister in the AK Party government. Four judges rejected to bring Gul to trial saying the president can only be trial for treason. But the seven judges seem determined to go put of their way and eventually vote to closedown the AK Party. So the months ahead may well be a mere formality for these judges.

He only option left for the AK Party is to change the rules at his late stage and make it impossible for the court to closedown the party. So they too have to bend and twist the rules like others are doing to closedown AK Party.

Democracy is taking a heavy beating as some people seem set to erase the ruling party of Turkey from the map and AK party trying to survive.