Call made to Parliament Speaker Kurtulmuş regarding Can Atalay

While it is being discussed in the lobbies that the parliamentary membership of Workers' Party of Turkey (TİP) Hatay deputy Can Atalay will be revoked after the decision regarding him is read in Parliament, a notable post came from the Ankara Bar Association's social media account.

An open letter was written to Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş by 57 provincial bar associations, requesting that the decision not be read in Parliament.

The statement, titled "Open Letter to Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş for the Press and Public," included the following expressions:

"Parliament Speaker Mr. Numan Kurtulmuş, as you know, the Istanbul 13th High Criminal Court did not comply with the violation decision rendered by the Constitutional Court upon the individual application of Hatay Deputy Şerafettin Can Atalay and sent the decision to the 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation for implementation. The 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation, with its decision dated November 8, 2023, decided not to comply with the Constitutional Court's violation decision and to file a criminal complaint with the Office of the Chief Public Prosecutor of the Court of Cassation for the assessment and execution of necessary actions regarding the Constitutional Court members who voted in favor of accepting the rights violation."

Following this decision, in the second individual application made to the Constitutional Court by Şerafettin Can Atalay's lawyers, the Constitutional Court this time decided that not only the right to be elected and engage in political activities, which is guaranteed under Article 67 of the Constitution, but also the right to individual application, which is guaranteed under Article 148 of the Constitution, had been violated, thus signing a decision that serves as a guide in terms of individual application law.

The Istanbul 13th High Criminal Court, to which the Constitutional Court's reasoned decision reached, instead of complying with the requirements of the decision, sent the file back to the 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation, and the 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation, instead of complying with the decision, insisted on its previous ruling and sent a letter to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) to initiate the procedures for the revocation of Şerafettin Can Atalay's parliamentary membership.

Mr. Speaker, according to Article 153/6 of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey No. 2709, which the TBMM has adopted, Constitutional Court decisions also bind the TBMM, which is the legislative body. Fulfilling the requirements of a judicial decision that aims to effectively render the Constitution dysfunctional by not complying with the Constitutional Court's decision would be a clear violation of the constitutional provision we mentioned above. Failure to comply with Constitutional Court decisions will also cause great harm to the "Rule of Law" quality listed in Article 2 of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey.

For this reason, we expect you to demonstrate a will to ensure that the verdict regarding Attorney Şerafettin Can Atalay is not read in the TBMM General Assembly."

News Source: 12punto