HDP Legal and Human Rights Commission Spokesperson and Batman MP Ayse Acar Basaran issued a written statement on the AKP making the law surrender.

“ARRESTS MADE THROUGH ILLEGAL METHODS”

Basaran pointed out the situation the arrested lawyers are in and said:

“17 of our colleagues including Contemporary Lawyers Association Chairperson Lawyer Selcuk Kozagacli have been in prison unlawfully for over a year. It has been clearly seen that the indictment against them is only a list of political demands during the first hearing in the Istanbul High Penal Court No.37. The panel of judges ruled on the last day of the trial, 14.09.2018 Friday at 22:00, to release the defendants, citing the lack of possibility of change in the attributed crime, ECHR verdicts on long-term remand and the fact that the defendants are lawyers. On 15.09.2018, when not even 12 hours had passed from the release verdict, the same panel of judges issued new arrest warrants. Our colleagues who are on trial for doing their jobs were arrested once again without their lawyers, without pronouncement, under police brutality and battery and without even giving statements. The right to defense and the institution of defense have been punished, in the person of our colleagues.”

Basaran said the panel of judges demanded Lawyer Kozagacli be detained by security forces due to “flight risk” even after the lawyer went to the court house by his own volition for the court order.

Basaran added: “The prosecutor’s objection that is cited as the reason for the arrest refers to the State of Emergency Decree No.696, Article 93 that changed the Turkish Penal Code Article 104/2 from ‘The court or the judge decides whether the suspect or defendant remains in remand or is released. A verdict of rejection can be challenged.’ to ‘These verdicts can be challenged.’ This unlawful method utilized in previous term MPs Idris Baluken, Meral Danis, Ayhan Bilgen, Ferhat Encu, Besime Konca and Lawyer Taner Kilic’s cases has been regulated and made permanent during the State of Emergency.”

“PRACTICES OF COUP PERIODS”

Basaran pointed out that the political power is forcing the judges and courts to accept their demands through pressure from the prosecutor’s office: “Every practice of coup periods is in place in Turkey in 2018. Security forces put on shows of force in court rooms, and prosecutors acting as defendants of the political power pressure courts.”