IF NEW SECURITY PACK BECOMES A LAW, ADMINISTRATION WILL BE COMPLETELY AUTHORITARIAN IN TURKEY.
Police Competency and Responsibility known as “New Security Pack” and Amendments in Some Laws and Legislative Decree Draft Law was prepared and sent to Grand National Assembly of Turkey in omnibus bill mentality, totally in line with the requirements of political power.
Draft law was examined in the context of personal security and freedom and if it becomes a law as is, there will be period in which personal rights and freedom will be violated more than ever under completely authoritarian administration in Turkey.
In Point of Law on Police Competency and Responsibility No 2559
The law 2559 Article 4/a will be altered and police will be authorized wider in the context of rub down search and searching on the vehicles. In this situation, we will live a period in which people and their vehicles will be spoiling for frequently.
A subsection was added to 15th item of the Law on Police Competency and Responsibility or Police Law and according to this subsection police can take complainant, witness or victim’s testimony in their homes in the manner that using power of prosecutor or court. Under normal circumstances witness’s testimony can be taken by courts. On the other hand, complainant and victim’s testimonies can be taken by police with approval from public prosecutor or just by court in any case. In relation to new legal amendment, prosecutor’s and court’s authorities will be usurped by making police more powerful.
By the help of new addition to the 16th item of the law of police powers, they try to create legal basis to chemicals in the TOMA’s pressurized water. In that case, we can easily say that using chemicals in the TOMA’s pressurized water until today by police was illegal. Public prosecutors should start to move and open an investigation to police force about using chemical in pressurized water against to protesters.
By adding d entry to 7th subsection of the 16th item of the law of police powers, police will have right to use guns to deactivate attacks in indoor or outdoor areas with guns like molotov, explosive, burnable, suffocative etc. In the event of becoming law of this provision, there will be many deaths as a result of practicing extreme prejudice and using excessive force originating from police. However, protesters who use molotov which is burnable but has limited effect will be encouraged to use real guns automatically. Political power will encourage protestors who tend to use violence to use real guns. Besides that, using real guns which have lethal effects against attacks which is doing with limited effective inflammable matter is totally contrarian to principle of proportionality. By this way, we need to understand that there will be contrarian case against both basic law and European Court of Human Rights too.
Authorities about intelligence gathering activity which is defined in MİT law will be useable by police too with the help of making update to additional 7th item of the law of police powers. Same provision will grant wide powers to gendarmerie due to changes in additional 5th item of the numbered 2803 Gendarmerie Law.
From the Point of View Law of Meetings and Demonstrations Numbered 2911
There are additions to B entry of the 1th substance of the 23th item of the law and they said that fireworks and handmade guns will be counted as gun and with the help of this determination iron ball and sling will be included to gun category. 1st entry of the 33th item of the law is changed and the punishment about using explosive guns like molotov and guns is increased from 2 years 6 months and 4 years.
Also, although there is a similar regulation in 7th item of the numbered 3713 law, punishment about propaganda of illegal organization is added to b entry of 33th item of the numbered 2911 law and it is identified from 6 months to 3 years. With the help of this changes, political power puts people who using violence and protestors without violence in the same equation in terms of punishment and they clearly declares that freedom of expression and demonstration of people is violated and will be violated. By this way, we can easily understand that political power’s aim is frightening and assimilating of opposition people by using this punishment threat.
From the Point of View Anti-Terror Law Numbered 3713
An entry of the 2nd subsection of the 7th item of the law was repealed and instead of this a new subsection is added. According to this change, punishment time is increased from 3 years to 5 years while in existence law it was 1 year to 5 years. In addition, lower punishment limit of people using force and violence is regulated like that it cannot be lower than 4 years. As a result of this, people who cover their face totally or partially even if not using violence in meetings and demonstrations will take 3 years punishment at least and this situation causes serious regulation about freedom of expression.
From the Point of View Law of Criminal Procedure Numbered 5271
By adding 4th subsection to the 91th item of the law of criminal procedure, police can use preventive detention power with written and verbal instructions of their chief. On condition that staying red-handed situation, there will be 48 hours detention power of police under 24 hours violence. Preventive detention is a regulation like accepting guilty of citizens by police as an administrative unit. This kind of regulation is clearly contrarian to state of law or presumption of innocence.
33th item of the law of meetings and demonstrations and 3th subsection of the 7th item of the anti-terror law are added to 3th subsection of the 100th item of the law of criminal procedure and as a result of this change there will be arresting obligation to people who join meetings and demonstrations. Instead of removing present 3th subsection of the 100th item, by making this subsection more serious in the sense of punishment will cause that being arrestments at Turkey’s agenda again.
From the Point of View Law of the Provincial Administration Numbered 5442
By adding G, H and I entries to 11th items of the law of the provincial administration, governors and head official of a districts will be counted as judicial police chief. Because of their directly dependence to political power, this situation means that universal principles in the law of criminal procedure will be set a nought. By this way, prosecution office of judiciary organization will connect to political power through governors and head official of a district.
With all of these changes, we will enter the period in which governors and head officials will be judicial police chief, police chief will have preventive detention power, in the sense of people joining social demonstrations, freedom of expression and demonstration of people will be restricted by doing arrestments, heavy punishments. By increasing power of police about using guns and counting molotov as gun, police will use gun easily against demonstrators and they can search citizen’s vehicles and bodies whenever they want. Countries where there are these kind of laws and authoritative implementations is defined as POLICE STATE.
We are not obliged to live with police state of New Turkey. We will use right of resistance in democratic and legal level for our fundamental rights and freedoms.
HUMAN RIGHTS ASSOCIATION