Salary crisis in the high judiciary: Court of Cassation and Council of State members protest the Constitutional Court

The 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation ruled not to comply with the Constitutional Court (AYM) decision that found a violation of rights regarding imprisoned Gezi detainee and MP Can Atalay, and filed a criminal complaint against the members of the AYM.

This move by the Court of Cassation also stirred up the political scene.

This crisis in the high judiciary was formalized by the decision of the 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation, but there was already salary-related tension among the high judiciary before this decision. During this period of tension, members of the high judiciary protested against each other at an official workshop.

AYM ANNULLED THE SALARY REGULATION

According to the report by Can Bursalı from Gazete Duvar; 13 days before its ruling on the violation of rights regarding Atalay, the AYM annulled a provision of the law on October 12 that provided for higher additional salary increases for Court of Cassation and Council of State members compared to first-class judges and prosecutors.

The additional salary increase granted to high judiciary members through an omnibus bill passed in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey on March 30, 2023, was challenged by a judge at the Ankara 25th Administrative Court on the grounds that it violated the principle of equality. The court then referred the regulation to the Constitutional Court with a request for annulment, arguing that it violated the principles of “the rule of law, judicial independence, equality, and the maintenance of industrial peace” as stated in the constitution.

COURT OF CASSATION AND COUNCIL OF STATE MEMBERS DID NOT ATTEND THE WORKSHOP

An annulment decision was issued following the application made after the salaries of Court of Cassation and Council of State members were equalized with those of AYM members through the omnibus bill. Once the AYM annulled the regulation, members of the Court of Cassation and the Council of State protested the workshop they had attended in previous years.

On October 30, five days after the AYM's violation ruling regarding Can Atalay, AYM President Zühtü Arslan delivered the opening speech at a meeting in İzmir titled "Individual Application Violation Decisions in the Judiciary and Eliminating the Consequences of Violations." During the sessions at the workshop, a group of high-ranking judicial members, including AYM Deputy President Hasan Tahsin Gökcan, AYM member Basri Bağcı, and AYM rapporteurs, gave presentations.

IS THE SALARY CRISIS THE ONLY REASON?

Members of the Court of Cassation and the Council of State, who had attended this and similar workshops in previous years, decided not to attend due to the AYM's annulment decision regarding salaries. It is being discussed in political circles that while the violation decision regarding Can Atalay caused the crisis within the high judiciary to reach its peak, the AYM's salary decision, even if not the sole cause of the crisis, increased the tension.