The Constitutional Court ruled on Thursday to block the HDP’s bank accounts holding Treasury grants upon the prosecutor’s request seeking to close the party.
The Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Deputy Co-Chair of the Law and Human Rights Commissions, lawyer Serhat Eren, said that the constitutional court’s stance on the closure case has also become clear with Thursday’s ruling.
The Constitutional Court approved the request of Bekir Sahin, top prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, to block the HDP accounts holding Treasury aid. HDP’s accounts will be blocked until the ruling is announced in the closure case. The state-run Anadolu News Agency reported that the decision was taken by 8 judges against 7. The Constitutional Court has given the HDP 30 days for a defence, and the party accounts are temporarily blocked until a defence is submitted.
AN ILLEGAL DECISION
Speaking to ANF, HDP Deputy Co-Chair of the Law and Human Rights Commissions, lawyer Serhat Eren, said that the decision was against the law, adding that the Constitutional Court hinted at closing the HDP.
He said: “We thought that the Constitutional Court would not accept the prosecutor’s request to block the HDP accounts. In our opinion, the court’s ruling is against the laws of the Constitutional Court. We do not know the reasoned decision yet. We will present our objection once we officially receive the reasoned decision.
However, this decision by the Constitutional Court is remarkable in terms of revealing its stance on the closure case. We think that the court, which has favoured this illegal request from the Court of Cassation, will opt for the closure of our party.”
WE WILL CONTINUE OUR STRUGGLE WITH OUR PEOPLE’S SELF-POWER
Lawyer Eren pointed out that the recent decision targeted not only the HDP but also the democratic politics in the country. He said: “This decision is in defiance of democratic politics, the law, the constitution, the European Convention on Human Rights and fundamental values, rather than just a blocking of HDP’s accounts. Undoubtedly, our party has a 30-year tradition of struggle. Our party has not survived with the help of treasury grants. Therefore, blocking party accounts will not make us take a step back from our struggle. Quite the contrary, we will continue our struggle with greater motivation based on our people’s self- power.”
COURT OF APPEAL SHOULD HAVE DISCLOSED ITS EVIDENCE TO US
Eren stressed that the decision has not been disclosed to them yet. He continued: “The decision has not been disclosed to us yet, but as far as we have learned from news agencies, we have been given a period of one month. We do not know what this one-month period is about. We do not know whether it is a deadline given to us to appeal the court decision or not. We have said from the very beginning that we are a party facing a permanent closure. If the Court of Cassation Prosecutor requests that our party’s accounts be blocked, it must disclose this request, along with the evidence, if any, with the reasons to us. We should have been given the opportunity to make our objections.
However, the Constitutional Court did not accept such a procedure. Unfortunately, it has ruled in an undemocratic and unlawful manner. Because if a prosecutor submits a request, it is necessary to ask what the parties would say about this request. But the Constitutional Court has given us time to appeal after it has already made its decision.”
Source: ANF English
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