‘Indictment of HDP closure case drafted by MHP, finalized by Palace’

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Having examined the second indictment seeking the closure of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) today (June 21), the General Assembly of the Constitutional Court has unanimously accepted the indictment issued by the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office of the Court of Cassation.

Shortly after this decision was announced, HDP Co-Chair Mithat Sancar held a press conference, which was also attended by HDP Co-Chair Pervin Buldan and other HDP politicians. Sancar underlined that the indictment filed against the party did not have any legal value.

"While the Constitutional Court took a historical opportunity, it has missed this opportunity, which is greatly unfortunate for Turkey," he said.

CLICK - Constitutional Court accepts indictment seeking HDP's closure

HDP Co-Chair Sancar reminded the public that the top court had the opportunity to reject the indictment all together, adding, "There was sufficient legal and conscientious reason to do this. The closure case has been filed following a months-long political campaign."

'MHP and government targeted HDP'

In his statement, Sancar referred to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), which has long been demanding the closure of the HDP. Sancar said:

"The government, especially its junior partner MHP, and pro-government people as a whole targeted the HDP for months. They made statements on various platforms, portraying the HDP as an enemy; they hurled threats and they made such a request from the Constitutional Court.

"They first addressed this request to the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office of the Court of Cassation. In short, there is this political campaign, this campaign of threat and blackmail behind the indictment lodged by the Chief Public Prosecutor of the Court of Cassation."

Mithat Sancar noted that "even the people with basic knowledge of the law can consider that an indictment which was prepared against this background cannot have a legal value." He underlined that "everyone saw with their own eyes that this was a political operation."

Referring to the first indictment seeking the HDP's closure and its rejection by the Constitutional Court, Sancar said: "We saw it all together how decayed, how hollow, how trashed a text the first indictment was.

"The Constitutional Court did the right thing by turning down the first indictment. While nothing has changed about it, the campaigns of blackmail are still ongoing and - to top it all - a murderous attack was carried out against our İzmir Provincial Organization, the fact that the Constitutional Court has accepted this indictment cannot possibly be explained by the law."

'It should have been rejected'

He also reiterated that "the Constitutional Court should have rejected the indictment by underlining these years-long operations of threat, blackmail, portrayal as enemies and total dismissal of the law."

According to Sancar, the top court "should have taken the İzmir attack into consideration" while giving its decision:

"While the attack carried out against the İzmir Provincial Building and Deniz Poyraz, who was massacred there, have openly shown everyone what kind of a game is played there, the Constitutional Court has shut its eyes to this truth, which has brought about a historical responsibility on its part.

"If the Constitutional Court had rejected this indictment amid this obvious political operation and bloody, dirty plans of chaos to eliminate democratc politics, it would have given the society of Turkey an important message in the name of hope for democracy. The Constitutional Court has wasted an important opportunity for social peace and freedom."

'Government is the prosecutor of the case'

Further in his statement, HDP Co-Chair Mithat Sancar said: "Without a doubt, the prosecutor of this case is not the Chief Public Prosecutor of the Court of Cassation. This indictment was prepared at the MHP Central Office, finalized at the legal units of the [Presidential] Palace and conveyed to the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office of the Court of Cassation.

"While the process is so obvious, everyone must see that the prosecutor of this case is the government itself."

Underlining that "the HDP and its lawyers will make the strongest defense possible in this case," Sancar said:  "But the principal lawyers of this case are the people, primarily the Kurdish people. 

"With their will attacked in every sphere, the Kurdish people have displayed their determination to defend their will at every opportunity and on every platform. The lawyer of the case is not solely the Kurdish people. The target of the case is primarily the Kurdish people and their will, but, at the same time, the joint struggle of the peoples which has been crystallized in the HDP.

'We will wreck this case'

"At the same time, the target of this case is to destroy the hope for democracy, to stifle the longing for freedom and to completely bury the dreams of peace. For this very reason, we say that the Kurdish people will primarily defend this case, but they will unify it with the joint struggle of Turkey's peoples. Taking all democracy forces in Turkey on their side, they will wreck this case. We will wreck this case, our determination is absolute." (HA/SD)