Turkish government mulls new judicial package

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

The government is working on a new judicial package for the democratization of Turkey, the co-leader of the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) has said.

Speaking to a group of reporters, Selahattin Demirtaş confirmed that he and BDP lawmaker Pervin Buldan met with Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin on June 10.

“We told the minister that the government should take concrete steps for democratization, that is what the society expects and they should not delay it,” Demirtaş told reporters. “We also said the crackdown targeting Gezi Park should be ended.”

Ergin gave the impression that the government was preparing for legal steps regarding democratization and the ongoing peace process, the BDP co-chair said, adding that this could be public in 15-20 days.

“What we expect from the judicial amendments is to ensure freedom on every field, especially press freedom, and regulations on fundamental human rights,” said Demirtaş. “If we get the right lesson out of what has been going on in the country, it is the right environment to go ahead for such regulations.”