Judicial board member says he quit post after consulting MHP leader Bahçeli
A member of Turkey's Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) has said that he quit his post after consulting MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli, whom he called "our leader."
Duvar English
A member of Turkey's Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) has said that he resigned from his post after consultations with far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli.
Hamit Kocabey, who resigned on Oct. 14, released a statement through his son on social media and called Bahçeli, a staunch ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, his "leader."
"I have resigned from my post as an HSK member as a result of our consultations with our leader Mr. Bahçeli," read the statement shared by Kocabey's son Nizamettin Kocabey, who is also Bahçeli's lawyer.
"We have never tolerated any wrongdoings," the statement read, which was accompanied by a picture of Hamit Kocabey and Bahçeli.
Kocabey's resignation and his links with a party within the ruling alliance have once again revealed the dire situation of Turkey's judicial independence.
Turkish courts have been issuing rulings in favor of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) for years, prompting criticism from Europe especially in the cases of political prisoners.
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