Striking remarks from the Constitutional Court President: The purpose of individual applications...

"Supporting the Effective Implementation of the Turkish Constitutional Court's Judgments in the Field of Fundamental Rights" was held at a hotel in Izmir as part of a joint project by the European Union and the Council of Europe, "Regional Meeting on Individual Application Violation Judgments in Judicial Courts and Eliminating the Consequences of Violations" was organized.

At the opening, Constitutional Court President Zühtü Arslannoted that having left the Republic's 100th anniversary behind means possessing great experience, and that it is everyone's duty to build the coming centuries with this experience and leave a much more prosperous, peaceful, and beautiful country for future generations.

Arslan stated that the 6th regional meeting was held within the scope of the project, expressing that these meetings make very important contributions to the better understanding and implementation of individual applications.

Stating that the founder of the Republic and its constitutional identity, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk,made very different definitions regarding the Republic,and that his statement most closely related to individual applications is "The Republic is, above all, the protector of the unprotected," Arslan conveyed, adding, "The duty and responsibility of being the protector of the unprotected falls most heavily on the judiciary. And since 2010, when individual applications were accepted, and 2012, when they were implemented, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Turkey has been performing very important duties on the path to becoming the protector of the unprotected, just as Atatürk indicated." he assessed.

Arslan pointed out that in individual applications, people from almost every segment of society in Turkey can come to the Constitutional Court with the claim that their fundamental rights and freedoms have been violated in some way, and he expressed that while making decisions on individual applications, the Constitutional Court also addresses fundamental issues, fundamental constitutional matters, and determines the principles and standards related to the subject.

"INDIVIDUAL APPLICATION HAS REVOLUTIONIZED THE LEGAL SYSTEM"

Zühtü Arslan, stating that not only the Constitutional Court but the entire legal system has undergone a transformation with individual applications, spoke as follows:

"Individual application has created a revolution in the legal system. For example, a process described as the constitutionalization of law has begun, and this process has reached a very important point as of today. From criminal law to labor law, from administrative law to family law, the Constitution has become a superior norm that is used much more frequently in every field. This is the case both in doctrine and in judicial decisions. This has brought with it the necessity of interpreting constitutional provisions in a uniform manner. Such a need has arisen. Because courts are obliged to make decisions in accordance with the Constitution. When they do this, they inevitably have to interpret the Constitution and constitutional provisions. And where there is more than one interpreter, there is more than one interpretation. This difference in interpretation and diversity of interpretation creates a richness for democratic states governed by the rule of law. There is room for this in democratic states governed by the rule of law. But there is no room for a cacophony of interpretations."

Emphasizing that a cacophony of interpretations is unacceptable in democratic states governed by the rule of law, Arslan said that when this occurs, one may face the problem of different laws being applied to different people.

Arslan stated that in this situation, the necessity of standardizing the law, and more importantly, interpreting constitutional provisions in a uniform manner, arises, and underlined that the body to resolve this is the Constitutional Court, which is tasked with interpreting and applying the Constitution.

Arslan noted that individual applications have only just completed their 11th year

News Source: AA