Ankara Bar Association Chair Koranel resigns from office

* Photo: Anadolu Agency (AA)

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Kemal Koranel has announced that he has resigned from office as the Ankara Bar Association Chair and executive board member.

Holding a press conference yesterday (March 23), Koranel recalled that he was elected a member of the executive board in 2016, took office as the Secretary General in 2018, came into office as the Vice Chair in 2020 and he was elected the Chair of the Ankara Bar Association on December 8, 2021 after Erinç Sağkan, the then Ankara Bar Association Chair, was elected the Chair of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations (TBB).

Arguing that "a perception operation was launched against him after he came into office as the Ankara Bar Association Chair", Kemal Koranel announced that he has resigned from office as the Ankara Bar Association Chair and executive board member "with the aim of waging an independent struggle against the mentalities trying to patronize".

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3 reasons cited for the resignation

In his statement to the press, Koranel cited three main reasons for his decision to resign from office, briefly stating the following:

"A report was prepared by the Ankara Bar Association Human Rights Center regarding the committal of torture and ill treatment at the Ankara Security Directorate's Counterterrorism Department on January 25, 2022; the report was submitted to the Bar Chair's Office and the related report was discussed at the Executive Board meeting on January 26, 2022.

"Even though the report contained some points contrary to the provisions indicated in the Directives of the Ankara Bar Association Human Rights Center, I shared my personal opinion in favor of publishing it with my friends at the Executive Board, as it was required by the rule of human rights and the historical mission of our Bar Association.

"However, despite my opinion that a criminal complaint should be filed and the report should be published in our website as an attachment of the petition of criminal complaint afterwards, a decision to the contrary was taken by a majority of votes to not publish the report.

"It needs to be known that I did not express a dissenting opinion to this decision on that day in order to protect the institutional identity of the Ankara Bar Association. I need to tell you that I have understood that I made a mistake by not expressing a dissenting opinion to the decision".

'A character assassination'

As the second reason for his resignation, Kemal Koranel referred to the dismissal of some members of the Ankara Bar Association with the decision of the executive board members on March 2, 2022.

According to Koranel, this decision was taken "contrary to the established customary practices of the Ankara Bar and the Attorney's Act, by interfering with the will of the colleagues and even by putting their will in pledge". He indicated that they were dismissed "with an anti-democratic decision and his dissenting opinion as the Chair of the Ankara Bar Association".

Noting that the reason for the dismissals was indicated as the activities for the general assembly and election in October 2022, Koranel argued that "while some members of the disciplinary board and inspection board and some chairs of centers and boards are free to run an election campaign, the ones who were considered to support him were dismissed".

As the last and latest reason for his resignation, Kemal Koranel said that "while he was in quarantine and on leave as per a medical report due to COVID-19, a decision was taken at the Executive Board without his presence on March 16, 2022 and a written notification was sent to 10,479 lawyers affiliated with the bar for the deferred bar premiums".

According to Koranel, "while the related document complies with the Attorney's Act, it is a character assassination solely oriented towards the election works amid the pandemic conditions and harsh economic hardships". Indicating that the related "character assassination" went beyond him personally and started to affect over 10,000 collageues", Kemal Koranel has announced his resignation to the public. (RT/SD)