After the 10th Judicial Package, introduced by the government under the name “Judicial Reform,” failed to meet any expectations, the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) held a second meeting with Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç. Öztürk Türkdoğan, Co-Spokesperson of the DEM Party’s Commission on Law and Human Rights, was part of the delegation that met with Tunç.

Speaking to ANF about the details of the meeting, Türkdoğan said they focused on concrete steps to address rights violations in prisons, the situation of ill prisoners, and the arbitrary extension of sentences.

“We especially discussed the situation of ill prisoners and the practices of extending sentences!”

Öztürk Türkdoğan, who served for many years as Co-Chair of the Human Rights Association (İHD) before becoming an MP, said that during their meeting on June 24, 2025, with the Minister of Justice, accompanied by DEM Party deputy chairs, they specifically discussed rights violations in prisons, the situation of ill inmates, and the practice of arbitrarily extending sentences (“infaz yakma”).

Türkdoğan explained that they raised the issue of the Ministry’s slow pace in handling these matters, emphasizing that addressing these problems is a requirement of human rights and that no legal amendments are necessary to do so—they conveyed this point practically.

He stressed that the process, especially regarding ill prisoners, was proceeding extremely slowly: “If fully equipped hospitals in the areas where ill prisoners are held have issued reports, the Forensic Medicine Institute (ATK) can examine these reports and quickly make a decision. We stated that moving slowly only worsens illnesses and increases responsibility. We drew the Minister’s attention to the fact that although a new process has begun and the political power supports this process, the judiciary and state bureaucracy are acting as if there were no new process at all. We said that if the political will has decided to carry this process through to the end, the bureaucracy must act in line with this determination. We reminded the Minister of this specifically. The Minister agreed with us and said that apart from issues requiring legislative amendments, everything that can be done within the legal framework should be done and that they would reassess these matters.”

“The main problem here is the lack of a legal guarantee for the process!”

Türkdoğan said they did not encounter a negative attitude in the meeting but pointed out that the problem arises from the bureaucracy’s unwillingness to abandon old habits. For this reason, he emphasized that establishing a legal framework for the process is very important: “The reason why the bureaucracy acts so slowly is precisely the lack of a legal guarantee for the process. That’s why legal guarantees are essential. If a legal guarantee had been established, I believe the bureaucracy would have acted much faster. We reminded them of this too. We said that there has only been a very minor development in the 10th Judicial Package. But if there had been a legal guarantee or legal framework, a law, or even a parliamentary commission set up, the bureaucracy could have acted more swiftly. We expressed this shortcoming as well. The Minister pointed to the AKP, saying this is a matter for the political parties. We reminded him that we have discussed these issues with the AKP, and they have postponed many topics to the fall. Fortunately, the Speaker of Parliament took the initiative, and before Parliament goes into recess, a parliamentary commission will be established. Most likely, a commission will be set up by July 15.”

“When you mention the Anti-Terror Law, everyone ends up in that basket”

Türkdoğan noted that when they raised the issue of releasing political prisoners, the authorities immediately brought up FETÖ: “When we talked about the situation of political prisoners, they immediately cited the Anti-Terror Law (TMK), claiming that these acts were criminal under the TMK. But when you say offenses under the TMK, everyone ends up lumped together in that basket. We said that you must first distinguish between those who resorted to violence and those who did not. There are so many journalists, politicians, human rights defenders, lawyers, elected mayors, municipal council members, provincial council members, and trade unionists in prison, none of whom have any connection with violence. If you treat all of this under the TMK, you are making a fundamental mistake. We told them to separate these cases, but they haven’t done so. They are aware of everything and took notes on all our remarks. Our meeting focused entirely on implementation issues, not laws, because we have already discussed those previously and unfortunately made no progress.”

“Why extend the sentence of someone who has already served 30 years?”

Türkdoğan said they focused on the problem of arbitrary sentence extensions:
“For example, some people have served 30 years in prison. Why should their sentences be extended? There are people whose sentences have been extended for three years after completing 30 years. We asked them to explain this. They took note,” he said. He stated that in this second meeting, they did not revisit the topics discussed in their previous meeting: “In April, we talked with the Minister about some topics but could not make any progress, so we did not bring them up again this time. For example, one of those issues was the Right to Hope. Therefore, we did not touch on it now. Instead, we discussed the situation of ill prisoners, those whose sentences have been extended, various specific transfer practices—basically, issues that need practical solutions. We also brought up the High-Security (“Kuyu Type”) Prisons and reminded them that people are on hunger strike. We focused on matters that the Ministry has the authority to resolve. We assessed reports prepared by our legal commission and issues communicated to our party. Later, we will meet again with Ministry bureaucrats to discuss these topics in more detail.”

“The lack of legal guarantees causes the bureaucracy to maintain old habits!”

Türkdoğan also commented on the government’s policy of not allowing the opposition any breathing room, noting that the root of the problem lies in the lack of a political and legal foundation for the process.

He stated that if a parliamentary commission is formed, it will create a political foundation, but so far no laws have been enacted to provide legal guarantees for the process.

He emphasized that the absence of legal guarantees causes the state bureaucracy and government to maintain old habits: “Today’s arbitrary detentions and arrests, the obstruction of bar associations’ activities—all these rights violations show that the state is still operating with a security-focused mindset.”

Türkdoğan noted that legal guarantees are not only necessary for the progress of the process but also vital for Turkey’s democratization: “The current situation is not good. We constantly criticize the government for this. We tell them: abandon these practices. Because these practices have eroded public confidence in the process. Public trust can only be restored by expanding freedoms. But if you increase pressure on the opposition, you will never secure broad public support for the peace process. We voiced all these criticisms. Our friends remain imprisoned. For example, our colleagues in the Kobanê trial are still in detention. Likewise, our co-mayors remain imprisoned. The trustee (kayyum) practice has not been abandoned. Our elected co-mayors have not been reinstated. Moreover, CHP’s Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Özer and Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan, who were arrested as part of the Urban Consensus investigation, remain in detention. In the HDK investigation, there are still colleagues who haven’t had their first hearing and remain imprisoned. We have expressed all of this.”

“The government has no choice but to democratize!”

Türkdoğan continued: “We are trying to explain to the government that reconciliation is very important, and we all support the peace process, but peace must be accompanied by democratization. Otherwise, we cannot win public trust in the process. Indeed, surveys show that nationwide confidence in the process remains below 50%. This stems from distrust in the government’s repressive policies. The DEM Party has always opposed this policy of repression against the opposition and continues to criticize all such practices, not only those targeting itself. Our MPs express this daily in Parliament, and we openly convey it in every meeting. We do not hold back our words on this issue. Our position regarding the increasing pressure on CHP is very clear: we tell the government to abandon this repression.”

Türkdoğan added: “The main issue again relates to the deadlock. Ultimately, Turkey reached this point through the authoritarianism created by a decade of conflict. If we had succeeded in the peace process in 2015, Turkey would not be in this situation today. That is why we are trying to ensure that with peace, Turkey can emerge from authoritarianism. Because unless we end the conflict in the Kurdish issue and secure peace—what is called ‘negative peace’—the government will not take any steps toward democratization.

At this point, the Kurdish movement is doing exactly that. Mr. Öcalan is doing this. He dissolved the PKK, ensured a decision to lay down arms, and will implement complete disarmament, ultimately telling this government: ‘You can no longer use weapons and violence as an excuse.’ Once violence and arms are removed from the Kurdish issue, whoever is in power can no longer claim to pursue this extreme security policy because of counter-terrorism.

Therefore, the government has no choice but to democratize. Democratic change does not occur without peace. In Turkey, there is often a debate about whether peace can be achieved without democratic change. This is an illusion. It is precisely because there was no peace that we lost democracy. We lost democracy because there was war. Democracy and peace will not come with this government.

So with whom will we make peace? Whoever governs the state, we will persuade them. You cannot open a democratic chapter without first achieving peace. That is why we are not only working to achieve peace but also fighting to build a democratic society alongside it—a struggle for democratization. It should not be forgotten that, as the DEM Party, we are both a party of struggle and a party of negotiation. Yes, we are negotiating, but we are also not holding back from struggle. Together with the opposition, we continue this struggle for the rights of society. We want the peace process to succeed at all costs. In any case, if a government in a reconciled environment does not move toward democratization, the people will punish it in the first election. The people will withdraw their support.”