Turkey’s state of emergency commission to start receiving applications on July 17

ANKARA

A newly established commission called the “State of Emergency Procedures Investigation Commission” will begin receiving objections to state of emergency rulings starting on July 17, Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım said on July 12. 

“With a new regulation, we have paved the way for appeals by public personnel dismissed from their posts with a state of emergency decree. We have established the State of Emergency Investigation Commission. It will start receiving appeals on July 17,” he said at the Economic and Social Research’s (SETA) headquarters in Istanbul.

Thousands of public personnel in Turkey have been dismissed from their posts with state of emergency decrees over suspected links to the movement of the U.S.-based preacher Fethullah Gülen, who is believed to have masterminded the failed July 15, 2016, coup attempt in which 249 people were killed across the country.

A total of 110,000 applications are expected to be received by the commission in the first stage. Around 105,000 are expected to be from police officers, military officers and civil servants dismissed or suspended from their jobs within the scope of previously issued decree laws, while the rest are expected to be applicants from closed associations, companies and foundations. The commission will examine the objections in an order based on when the relevant state of emergency decrees were issued. 

The commission was established with a decree law issued on Jan. 23 and consists of seven members. Along with the seven members, a team of 200 people including inspectors, law officials, accountants, investigation judges and transcribers will also work in the commission.