‘Turkey’s 4th Judicial Package exacerbates the problems’

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The Bill Foreseeing Amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure (CMK) and Some Laws, which is known as the "4th Judicial Package" in short, passed into law by the Parliament last week.

In a policy paper, the Checks and Balances Network (DDA) has commented on the changes introduced by the 28-article bill.

According to the paper, "The 4th Judicial Package introduces important, but limited changes about several issues such as the long periods of arrest, the rulings of arrest given in the absence of concrete evidence, the effectiveness of the judiciary and the deficiencies within the judiciary, which have been indicated as the problematic areas in the field of judiciary in Turkey."

Referring to the amendments to the Code of Administrative Procedure, the DDA has defined them as "positive changes to more quickly protect the rights of the aggrieved plaintiffs or applicants, to speed up the process of accessing the court and to avoid delays in court rulings."

NOTE: The 4th Judicial Package contains legal amendments with regards to the right to a fair trial and offenses of violence against women, feminicides and child abuse.

It exacerbates the problems

The DDA has also shared its comments on the extension of the aggravating factors in such a way to include the "divorced spouses".

Defining this extension as "a positive step taken within the context of preventing violence against women and feminicides", the Checks and Balances Network has raised concerns that the related legislation "keeps the aggravating factors limited to the traditional institution of marriage and to divorce, where this institution is no longer in effect." The policy paper of the DDA has explained that "the limitedness in this context does not cover the unmarried women who are aggrieved by the offenses of killing, deliberate injury, torment, false imprisonment and threat."

"Considering the dimension of the problems of violence against women and feminicides in Turkey, the assessment of the law solely on the basis of the family once again shows that there is not a gender-based perspective in solving these problems," the Network has noted.

"This attitude disregards the gender inequality underlying the problems of violence against women and feminciides, thereby exacerbating the problems even more instead of offering solutions," it has added.

It brings about a dual result

The policy paper of the Network has also referred to the condition that the arrest for a catalogue crime shall be "based on concrete evidence indicating a strong criminal suspicion." According to the DDA , especially in cases of feminicides and offenses committed by the defendants of sexual abuse, this "offers an disproportional protection measure."

Indicating that imprisonment is - most of the time - implemented not as a protection measure, but "as a device to push a crime or defendant to effective remorse", the Network has underlined that seeking "concrete evidence that indicates a strong criminal suspicion" for arresting people on charge of catalogue crimes leads to a dual result.

It has also referred to the "possibility that decisions and protection measures disproportional to the committed crime in cases of sexual abuse and assault might be taken" as per this 4th Judicial Package.

"The number of sexual abuse and sexual assault cases in Turkey and the small-scale protection measures and decisions given in these processes lead to problems within the context of deterrence as well as the establishment of justice," the Network has underlined.

Concluding the policy report, the Network has also shared a series of recommendations, including the extension of the scope of aggravating factors in such a way to apply to all unmarried women.

The Checks and Balances Network has also noted that the major problem in Turkey is "the judicial independence and impartiality and meritocracy", stressing that this problem can be solved with systematic legal amendments to the Constitution and laws. (RT/SD)