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(Turkey)

Chief Prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals Abdurrahman Yalçınkaya had applied to the Constitutional Court to request the closure of the DTP in November 2007. He claimed that the DTP members actions and statements run counter to the independence of the state and the indivisible integrity of its territory and nation and that the party has become the focal point of these acts.

In the party s defense statement, Türk stressed that the efforts of the DTP, especially in the Parliament, for a peaceful solution to the Kurdish problem were ignored and that they were not given a suitable platform in which to offer their solutions.

"The way in front of the DTP should be opened for the sake of keeping the problem in a democratic context. Such a historical development will be a magnificent contribution to Turkish democracy. You should not disappoint or harm the belief in democracy of the people who voted for us," Türk said in the three-hour defense statement.

Türk claimed that it is quite normal that his party is discussing the ideas of Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed terrorist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) since Öcalan is suggesting solutions to the Kurdish problem on the basis of maintaining a unitary state.

"While even the high state officials are following what Öcalan said, it is unfair to expect us to implement a policy of ignoring what Öcalan has to say," Türk said. 

It was also underlined in the defense that some evidence presented to the court by the prosecutor is false or distorted. The DTP suggested that most of the actions in question are just the reflection of freedom of expression.

The DTP also highlighted the need for applying the criteria formulated by the Venice Commission to the closure case and recalled European Court of Human Rights decisions on freedom of expression.

According to procedure, following the verbal defense, the rapporteur of the Constitutional Court will collect documents and information related to the case and will prepare his report. In the meantime, the chief prosecutor and the DTP may submit additional evidence or defense items to the court. After the rapporteur s report is distributed to the 11 members of the court, Constitutional Court President Haşim Kılıç will determine a day when the justices will convene to hear the case. Under the Constitution, for a political party to be closed down, at least seven of 11 members of the Constitutional Court must vote for closure.

Meanwhile, a group of supporters of the DTP, including DTP deputies Sebahat Tuncel and Aysel TuÄŸluk, demonstrated against the closure of their party in the BeyoÄŸlu district of Ä°stanbul. The group shouted slogans such as "We want peace but we are ready for war" and "Don t try our patience, don t make us head to the mountains." 

Hüsnü Öndül, the chairman of the Human Rights Association (İHD), in a written statement pointed out that not the DTP but the political system has to be judged in accordance with the principles of a pluralistic democracy.

17 September 2008, Wednesday

AYÅžE KARABAT  ANKARA

Source: http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=153392&bolum=103

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