Judges, prosecutors to be on duty at Turkey’s airports

ANKARA

AA Photo

Turkey’s Justice Ministry is working on a practice which will allow prosecutors and judges to be present at airports day and night, according to local media reports.

Speaking to reporters during a meeting on “Human Rights Action Plan” on Feb. 21, Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gül said that prosecutors and judges will be present at Turkey’s airports for emergency situations.

The system will first be implemented in Istanbul Airport and then will scatter to other airports, according to Gül.

The practice will be concerned with solving urgencies at the airports, for instance, for people with arrest warrants or those who have a ban on leaving the country.

With this implementation, people facing trial will not have to postpone their travels and will have the chance to carry out their legal procedures at airports. If their legal issues get solved the same day, they will be able to travel the same day, without having to being referred to a court in cities’ centers.

Gül had previously announced that court-like judicial structures will be established at major airports where the Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBİS) will be used for trials.

The new SEGBİS system that is to be established within the scope of Judicial Reform Strategy was prepared during the EU negotiation process.

The Turkish Parliament on Oct. 17, 2019 adopted a bill of 39 articles - the first package of the Judicial Reform Strategy Document. The bill oversees amendments in 15 pieces of legislation.

The 39-article bill oversaw amendments in 15 pieces of legislation and tackled many areas from sexual harassment to freedom of expression.

The minister also provided figures on the number of people convicted or arrested. According to the figures, currently 253,888 people are imprisoned in Turkey while the number of people arrested reaches 45,742.

In 2019, the number of convicts were over 250,000 in Turkey. After the deadly coup attempt of July 15, 2016, jail occupancy level had reached 121 percent.

The minister also said that within three years, nearly all of the members of the judiciary have been replaced.

“Do not forget, these changes were not a matter of preference, but were mandatory,” Gül said.

Nevertheless, with the new judiciary cadre, the number of women prosecutors and judges has seen an increase of 46 percent.

The number of women judges and prosecutors was 2,664 in 2010, it was 3,549 in 2013 and 3,977 in July 2016. Since 2010, the number of female judges and prosecutors has tripled.

While the rate of women judges and prosecutors was 22.8 percent in 2010, this rate increased to 36 percent in 2019.