CHP submits 40-question parliamentary inquiry to Akın Gürlek

CHP Deputy Chairman Sezgin Tanrıkulu has submitted a written parliamentary inquiry to the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) for the newly appointed Minister of Justice, Akın Gürlek, to answer.

In the justification section of his inquiry, Tanrıkulu pointed to the constitutional position of the Ministry of Justice, stating, "The Ministry of Justice is one of the most fundamental institutions with constitutional responsibility for protecting the principle of the rule of law, human rights, the right to a fair trial, judicial independence and impartiality, the penal execution system, criminal justice policy, and fundamental rights and freedoms. During Mr. Yılmaz Tunç's tenure as Minister of Justice, serious structural problems and controversies were experienced in the areas of the judicial system, penal execution regime, human rights practices, access to justice, judicial independence, the right to a fair trial, the right to defense, detention practices, freedom of expression, freedom of the press, the right to assembly and demonstration, prison conditions, allegations of torture and ill-treatment, judicial reform documents, execution regulations, and judicial policies."

Touching upon the expectations regarding the tenure of the new Minister of Justice, Akın Gürlek, Tanrıkulu included the following assessment in his statement:

"The newly appointed Minister of Justice, Mr. Akın Gürlek, has an obligation to provide information to the public and the TBMM in a transparent, accountable, and auditable framework regarding both the actions taken and not taken in the previous period, as well as the reforms, projects, and policies he will implement during his own ministerial term. In this context, answering the following questions has become mandatory for the public interest in order to evaluate the previous period's practices holistically and to set out the roadmap for the new term."

The following questions were included in CHP member Tanrıkulu's inquiry:

I- Actions Taken During Yılmaz Tunç’s Ministerial Term

1- What are all the regulations, circulars, communiqués, and administrative arrangements issued during Mr. Yılmaz Tunç's ministry? Is there a list of these classified by subject headings?

2- What are the regulations implemented within the scope of the Judicial Reform Strategy Documents? How many have been effectively implemented, and how many have remained on paper?

3- What are the changes made to the penal execution system?

4- What are the concrete effects of the regulations made regarding probation, conditional release, execution periods, and the execution regime?

5- What are the investments made for increasing prison capacity, and what are the new prison projects and constructions?

6- What are the works carried out within the scope of health services, psychological support, social services, and rehabilitation programs in prisons?

7- What are the regulations made regarding the legal aid system?

8- What are the investments and projects made in the field of digital justice (UYAP, e-hearing, e-notification, etc.)?

9- Which practices have been implemented within the scope of the human rights action plan?

10- How much has the number of judicial personnel (judges, prosecutors, court clerks, prison guards, etc.) been increased?

II- Actions Not Taken / Left Incomplete

11- Which constitutional and legal regulations aimed at strengthening judicial independence and impartiality have not been enacted?

12- Why has the reform regarding the structure of the Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) not been realized?

13- Despite the principle that detention should be an exception, why could widespread detention practices not be prevented?

14- What structural measures have not been taken to prevent long detention periods?

15- Why have structural reforms in the field of freedom of expression and freedom of the press not been implemented?

16- Why have regulations guaranteeing the right to a fair trial regarding political cases, trials concerning social events, and mass files not been made?

17- Why have independent oversight mechanisms regarding allegations of torture and ill-treatment not been established?

18- Why has a structural execution reform to solve the problem of overcrowding in prisons not been carried out?

19- Why have cooperation mechanisms with bar associations to strengthen the right to defense not been developed?

20- Why have policies aimed at disseminating alternative dispute resolution methods (mediation, conciliation) in a way that strengthens access to justice not been sufficiently implemented?

III- Actions and Projects Planned During Akın Gürlek’s Ministerial Term

21- Has a short, medium, and long-term Justice Reform Roadmap been prepared for the new ministerial term?

22- Are there any drafts for legal amendments aimed at strengthening judicial independence?

23- Is a regulation aimed at the democratization of the HSK structure planned?

24- Will a legislative amendment be made to make the detention measure an exception?

25- Will automatic oversight mechanisms be established against long detention periods?

26- Is there a reform plan for restructuring the penal execution regime based on human rights?

27- Will an independent monitoring and oversight mechanism be established in prisons?

28- Will an independent structure be established to investigate allegations of torture and ill-treatment?

29- Will budgetary and institutional arrangements be made to strengthen the legal aid system?

30- Will new protocols be made with bar associations and the Union of Turkish Bar Associations (TBB) to strengthen the right to defense?

31- Are there any projects that will increase transparency, auditability, and data security in digital justice systems?

32- Will special judicial policies be created for the child justice system, women's justice, and vulnerable groups?

33- Will restorative justice models be disseminated in the criminal justice system?

34- Will an independent observation mechanism be established for trials concerning social events?

35- Is it planned to establish an institutional structure similar to a Human Rights Monitoring and Reporting Presidency within the Ministry of Justice?

36- Is it planned to present a regular periodic "Justice System Status Report" to the TBMM?

37- Will a special mechanism be established to oversee the implementation of European Court of Human Rights decisions?

38- Will new ethical legislative regulations be made in the fields of judicial ethics, judicial transparency, and accountability?

39- Will mandatory in-service training programs based on human rights be created for judicial members?

40- Will participatory mechanisms be established to ensure the participation of civil society, bar associations, academia, and professional organizations in the formation of justice policies?