Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç: Lawsuits related to the February 6 earthquakes will be completed in 168 days

Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç, from the February 6 earthquakes announced that a temporary article has been added to the administrative litigation process regarding damage assessments and demolition decisions, and that with this article, cases that would normally take 750 days to complete will be concluded in 168 days.

Minister Tunç arrived in Kilis for various official contacts. First, Kilis Governor Tahir Şahinwas visited by Tunç, who received information about the city. Speaking to reporters afterward, Tunç stated that they evaluated the work carried out in the province following the earthquake.

Tunç, stated that recovery efforts are continuing in Kilis, which was affected by the earthquake disaster. He announced that 93 percent of the 4,552 heavily damaged buildings and approximately 700 disaster housing units will be completed and delivered to their owners next month.

PRECAUTIONS TAKEN

Stating that they have been working meticulously to ensure that judicial services are not disrupted in the 11 provinces following the earthquake, Tunç noted that new courts were established by sending reinforcements from other provinces to the region. He also emphasized that 12,000 convicts in prisons that were heavily damaged in the earthquake were transferred to other provinces, adding, "Following the earthquake, we quickly carried out repairs on our damaged buildings. A total of 15 of our courthouse buildings had sustained heavy damage. We included all of them in investment programs and began construction processes and project work. We have completed the tenders for some of them and are following this process without interruption. We have also included 253 judicial residences located in the region in the investment program. Of course, we have taken the necessary precautions to ensure that judicial services in the region are not disrupted and that administrative lawsuits arising from demolition decisions and damage assessments do not become deadlocked." he said.

"In our regional meeting held in Gaziantep with the participation of our judges, prosecutors, and administrators from the region, we shared important views on earthquake assessment and judicial services. I would like to mention two important legal amendments that were published in the Official Gazette and entered into force as of last week, following the legal regulations submitted to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in line with the needs and opinions that emerged at this meeting. A temporary article, which introduces a new procedure to be applied in administrative lawsuits arising from damage assessments and demolition decisions, was envisaged only for cases covering the 11 provinces affected by the February 6 earthquakes. Thanks to this regulation, lawsuit processes that would normally be completed in 750 days will end within 168 days with this procedure. This is an important regulation, especially in terms of ensuring that judicial services are not disrupted and that the reconstruction process of our cities is not delayed."

"THERE ARE NO DISRUPTIONS"

Emphasizing the importance of completing expert reports quickly and not disrupting judicial processes within the same legal regulation, Tunç "For this reason, we have implemented legal regulations by adding a temporary article to the Expert Witness Law regarding expert witnesses to be appointed from outside the region, in order to ensure that the ongoing cases in the region do not stall in terms of current legislation. Of course, our judges and prosecutors who will implement these regulations are also continuing their work with great devotion. In this context, there has been no disruption in judicial services so far" he said.

"WE ARE CONTINUING OUR FOLLOW-UP" 

Drawing attention to the need for a courthouse building in Kilis, Tunç, "Our courthouse in Kilis was completed in 2012, but it has become unable to meet the needs of the growing population. For this reason, we are submitting an investment program proposal for the construction of a new central courthouse covering 8,460 square meters. Furthermore, we have submitted our investment program proposal for the 11,329-square-meter Kilis Courthouse Annex to be included in the 2024 feasibility project program and subsequently in the construction program. As the Ministry of Justice, we are continuing our follow-up to ensure that judicial services in the region continue without interruption. We will accelerate our efforts to rebuild our cities destroyed after the earthquake and will continue our policy aimed at our goal of creating more resilient cities against disasters in the future"" he said. Following his visit to the governor's office, Tunç proceeded to the courthouse and Chief Public Prosecutor Selçuk Akman paid a visit to.