The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) appealed to the Constitutional Court (AYM) to review the revocation of Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu's mandate. Before the application, Gergerlioğlu made a statement to the accompaniment of HDP Istanbul Deputy Erol Katırcıoğlu and lawyers.

"THERE IS NO CRIME IN QUESTION"

Gergerlioğlu said, "Although I am not guilty, my parliamentary seat has been removed. Everyone knows about this injustice, yet some people are still silent. There is an unlawfulness and judicial murder that may also target you in future. I am accused of a retweet I posted. There is not a single person who can call it a crime. There is no need to be a lawyer to understand this unlawfulness."

"I CALL ON ŞENTOP TO RESIGN"

Gergerlioğlu pointed out that the action taken against him is a matter of unlawfulness. Many Constitutional experts have written about this action which ignores the Constitution. Despite all this, Mustafa Şentop allowed the decision to be read out in the parliament. Shame on Şentop for not protecting the will of the nation and I am calling him to resign.”

FAKE VIDEO FOR AN OFFICIAL DOCUMENT

The HDP MP noted that Şentop his officials add a fake video in the official document about the case, after which he was hastily detained on charges of “spreading propaganda for a terrorist organization”. It was Şentop who allowed all of this to happen, said the deputy for Kocaeli province.

"HOW CAN A PERSON GIVE UP ON HUMAN RIGHTS?"

Gergerlioğlu continued, "My party always stands with me but other MPs should also make a choice at this point. Do they side with Şentop or Gergerlioğlu? I am waiting for their support. The Speaker of the Assembly is in charge of protecting the Constitution and the immunities. I will go to prison. How does anyone who claims to be a human give up on human rights?"

'AYM SHOULD STOP THIS'

Gergerlioğlu said, "What is the Constitutional Court (AYM) waiting for? Is it waiting for a deputy to go to prison? Who or what will I trust if the AYM cannot provide justice? The politicians may have taken over the judiciary, but the AYM can stop this. There is a Constitutional Court decision that freed Enis Berberoğlu (MP for CHP) and I am waiting for the same decision. Is this happening to me because I report human rights violations?”

Gergerlioğlu added, "I expect the AYM to do the right thing, this is the last stop."

BACKGROUND

Gergerlioğlu had his parliamentary mandate withdrawn last Wednesday due to a final judgement on terror charges. In February, the Turkish Court of Cassation had upheld a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence against the 55-year-old politician and human rights defender for his appeals for peace directed at both the Turkish state and the Kurdish movement. The judiciary interprets the commitment to peace - in this specific case in the form of a retweet from 2016 - as terror propaganda.

The politician, who is actually a doctor by profession and has made a name for himself as a human rights defender, is defending himself against the ruling with a constitutional complaint. The mandate has been revoked even though the Constitutional Court's decision on his case is still pending. According to the Turkish constitution, a deputy's mandate can be revoked if a criminal offense has been committed that would have precluded candidacy from the outset. The HDP criticizes the judge's ruling as politically motivated.

Meanwhile, Gergerlioğlu was summoned by the Kocaeli Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Monday to voluntarily turn himself in to the "judicial authorities" to serve his prison sentence. He was threatened with an arrest warrant in the contrary case.