Justice Ministry accelerates moves to lift HDP, CHP legislators’ immunities

ANKARA

DHA photo

Turkey’s Justice Ministry has accelerated the process to lift the legislative immunities of eight members of parliament, four each from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP).

The Justice Ministry sent 12 summaries of proceedings, five of which are against HDP co-leader Selahattin Demirtaş, to the Prime Ministry in order to be passed to parliament which has the final say on the issue, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported on April 1.

The five separate files against Demirtaş concern charges of “insulting the president; insulting a public official in connection with their duty; provoking people to hatred and enmity; making propaganda for a terrorist organization; and opposition to Law No. 2911 on Meetings and Demonstrations.”

Demirtaş’s HDP is focused on the Kurdish issue.

In mid-March, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) proposed a provisional change to Article 83 of the constitution for a blanket removal of lawmakers whose summaries of proceedings have been transferred to the Parliament Speaker’s Office by the Prime Ministry. A large majority of the 522 pending cases in parliament concern lawmakers of the HDP, followed by the CHP.