CHP Chairperson Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's Statement Following His Visit to Can Atalay, Detained MP

Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairperson Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu visited Workers' Party of Turkey Hatay Deputy Can Atalay, who is under arrest at Marmara Prison in Silivri, Istanbul. CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said, "The main reason for our visit here is to publicize the will of the Parliament. No one can keep an MP, an MP elected with the votes of the nation, an MP who has not been convicted, in prison by excluding the will of the Parliament. This is not right."

CHP leader Kılıçdaroğlu made the following statement to press members after the visit:

Dear friends, we visited Hatay MP Mr. Can Atalay in prison, today. I listened to him with my friends. He raised four issues. First of all, he expressed his excitement about our visit. I replied that it is good to be excited. He said that the first thing he wants to do after he gets out of here is, going to Hatay and visiting the earthquake victims in the earthquake zone; he expressed his desire to do this and said that he would definitely go. He said that this was a very unfair case and that they were being held in prison for nothing. As far as I can see, he has almost memorized the entire case file. He knows all the injustices, he told us about them one by one. It is really unbelievable and he expressed that he and his friends are determined to defend the republic and democracy in any case.

We told that we would defend the republic and democracy, that we would defend them under all circumstances, and that the main reason we came here was to defend the will of the nation, to defend democracy. Because Mr. Atalay, for one thing, he is not a convicted prisoner, all of our nation should know this, he is under arrest. In other words, there is no court decision against him. He is currently under arrest. When he is under arrest, he submits his petition to be elected as an MP, he gets a criminal record from the relevant prosecutor's office. He then takes the letter stating that he had no criminal record, from the public prosecutor's office to the Supreme Electoral Council. At the Supreme Electoral Council, 11 judges, I would like to underline it carefully, 11 judges, confirm that Mr. Can Atalay has the right to participate in the election, that he has the right to be an MP, that he has the right to participate in the election, and Mr. Atalay runs as an MP candidate from Hatay and is elected. His name is read out at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM), but he cannot take the oath because he is not there. Then Can Atalay is elected to the Commitee on Human Rights Inquiry with the votes of all deputies in the TBMM.

For God's sake, what kind of a practice is this? What kind of a judiciary is this? What kind of democracy is this? Can Atalay is in prison, the MPs who are in charge, or more precisely serving in the TBMM elect Can Atalay to the commission responsible for human rights, and Can Atalay is still in prison. The main reason we are here is to publicize the will of the Parliament.

No one can keep an MP in prison by excluding the will of the Parliament, who has been elected with the votes of the nation, and who has not been convicted. This is not right. Who would be best suited to this task, who would be best suited to announce this unlawfulness to the people? It would suit the Republican People's Party the most. Because we are the party that brought democracy to this country. If we brought democracy, we have to keep democracy alive with all its institutions and rules.

Hereby, I would also like to make a call to the Speaker of the Parliament. In his statement today, Mr. Speaker’s says: "The will of the parliament has been formed." On the contrary, the approach I expected from him was like this: There is a decision of the Constitutional Court on a similar issue. He would take that decision, obtain it from the legislative counsellors in the parliament and draft a petition on it. He would write that decision to the Ministry of Justice to fulfill the requirements of the aforementioned decision of the Constitutional Court. It seems that Mr. Speaker quite is content while he sits on his parliamentary decision with nation’s will, while another parliamentarian is still arrested unlawfully and deprived of his right of representation he achieved through the very same nation’s will. I mean he (Can Atalay) has to be called to the parliament and it is the Speaker of the Parliament who has to be the primary actor to struggle for this.

Thank you all. I appreciate your presence here. What I also want from you, from members of the media... Look, there are journalists, your colleagues in prison today. No, friends. People cannot be imprisoned for their thoughts. This is the 21st century. We are not in the Medieval Age, we are in the 21st century. People cannot be sent to prison for their thoughts. Not only legitimately elected MPs, but also jurists, journalists, many people are in jail. Enough is enough means “enough is enough!” Let the people relieve a little bit. Let the nation cheer up a little bit with the hopes of restoration of democracy. There is an atmosphere of pessimism on all hands. Another reason for my presence here is to underline the fact that no one has the right to be pessimistic, nor the law. As the founders of this republic, who were our ancestors, our grandparents, managed to combine the republican regime and the democracy, we also have to honor their legacy, contributing to this rightful struggle to consolidate the republican regime and to enlarge democracy. I expect the media workers to make the biggest contribution.

Thank you all. I heartily thank you very much to join us, friends.