PodcastOusted MP Can Atalay denounces injustice in letter from prison
Turkey Workers’ Party MP Ahmet Şık read a letter from jailed former lawmaker Can Atalay in the parliament. Atalay accused lawmakers of defying the Constitution, criticized corruption, and vowed to keep fighting for justice and public welfare from prison.
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Turkey Workers’ Party (TİP) MP Ahmet Şık on Dec. 18 read a letter by imprisoned MP Can Atalay in parliament during ongoing budget discussions.
Another TİP MP from the southeastern Hatay province, Atalay's parliamentary membership was revoked despite a Constitutional Court ruling. Atalay sent the letter from Silivri Prison.
Atalay began his letter by saying, “I know you don’t want to remember. You want to ignore, forget, and make others forget about me in prison.”
Atalay continued, “I wish I could address you as ‘honorable representatives of an institution entrusted with the duty to uphold the Constitution.’ However, my circumstances do not allow it. Please excuse me.”
He cited the Constitutional Court's Feb. 22 ruling, which stated that the parliament violated its procedures by reading the letter that announced Atalay's MP status.
He added, “Instead of defending the Constitution, Parliament submitted to the violation. This is the situation, as clear as day. Those responsible for this disregarded the rule of law and relied on irrational arguments. By ignoring the Constitutional Court and following their whims, they openly suspended the Constitution.”
Atalay said he would have spoken on many issues if he could participate in parliamentary sessions.
“For instance, I would have a lot to say about the practices of the Environment and Urbanization Ministry and the Culture and Tourism Ministry. Through cases I followed as a lawyer—such as Gezi, Taksim Square, Tarlabaşı, Sulukule, Validebağ Grove, Emek Cinema, Galataport, and the Northern Forests—I could detail how public resources were plundered, handed to cronies, and used to enrich a small elite.”
AKP plans massive property transfer in Istanbul through urban renewal projectsDomesticHe said he would also have criticized privatization policies, highlighting their devastating consequences. “I would remind you of the Çorlu Train Massacre, which claimed 25 lives. I would confront the Energy and Labor Ministers with the pain caused by a system that prioritizes profit over workers’ lives, such as in the mines of Soma, Kınık, and Savaştepe.”
Turkish Court gives verdict in fatal Çorlu train accident case after six yearsDomesticAtalay further criticized the Education Ministry for targeting municipal daycare centers while ignoring unregulated religious dormitories. “I was the lawyer for the children who died in the Aladağ dormitory fire. Through this case and others, I would expose the horrific system they created to undermine secularism by handing children over to religious sects.”
Turkish main opposition CHP slams government plan to close municipal daycare centersEducationHe asked whether the budget included resources for protecting citizens and ensuring humane living conditions. “Do you have a budget to ensure children can eat one healthy meal a day at school? For women’s freedom? For a healthcare system that doesn’t extort new mothers? For Hatay, a city devastated by the Feb. 6 earthquakes, to recover and rebuild?”
Security measures lifted at Turkey’s temporary housing for quake survivors to cut costsDomesticHe answered, “No! No! No! But know this: we will continue to fight and resist to make these things happen! No matter what you do, we will not abandon this country or its people to those who worship only money.”
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