Turkish Interior Ministry files complaint against CHP, HDP lawmakers

ANKARA

The Interior Ministry has filed a criminal complaint against lawmakers from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) on allegations that it used the disappearance of local politician Hurşit Külter, who surfaced in Kirkuk following months of questions about his fate, as a tool of propaganda.

Complaints were filed against HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş and HDP group deputy chairman İdris Baluken, who were both arrested on Nov. 4, CHP Istanbul lawmaker Sezgin Tanrıkulu and Külter’s lawyer, Mesut Gerez, for alleging that he was detained in the southeastern province of Şırnak, subjected to torture and marked for execution while in captivity.

Külter of the Democratic Regions Party (DBP), which focuses on the Kurdish issue, appeared before the press on Oct. 7 in Kirkuk to relate what occurred to him since he went missing on May 27, when many feared he had been killed while in custody. Külter told the press that he had escaped after nearly two weeks as a captive of Turkish forces before slowly making his way to safety in Kurdish northern Iraq.

The Interior Ministry submitted the complaint to Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, on complaints that the four “made up a crime,” “attempted to affect a fair trial,” “attempted to influence those doing their legal duties,” “incited hatred and enmity or humiliation,” “incited crime,” “provoked people to not abide by the law” and “humiliated the Turkish people, the Turkish Republic and the state’s institutions.” 

The Interior Ministry said the allegations that Külter had been kidnapped by Turkish forces were fabricated and that the defendants attempted to bring the Turkish Republic under suspicion and incite anger among the public. A campaign targeting the state and security units was also conducted, the ministry added.