President Erdoğan: “We must not allow justice to be sacrificed for the sake of ratings and interaction hunting.”

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stated, “We should not turn a blind eye to the sacrifice of justice for the sake of ratings and interaction hunting. I believe that everyone, especially our media, should show maximum sensitivity regarding this issue.”

President Erdoğan spoke at the opening ceremony of the 1st Term Training for Judges and Prosecutors Assistants held at the Beştepe National Congress and Culture Center. Wishing the ceremony to be a harbinger of good, President Erdoğan noted that the strength and reputation of judicial activities derive from the competence of lawyers and their superior moral values such as commitment to justice. He conveyed that based on this truth, they have renewed, strengthened, and expanded the capabilities of the justice academy with an effective educational understanding for reliable justice. “We have not shied away from any sacrifice to ensure that our judges and prosecutors, who form the backbone of our judicial system, are trained in the best way possible and can fulfill their duties with dignity. The institution of judges and prosecutor assistants is a product of an intellectual pursuit and quest carried out with this belief. Look; today, there are a significant number of people who have received legal education in our country, and we have an important number and diversity of institutions and faculties that provide legal training. In the last 22 years, we have achieved a remarkable increase in the number of lawyers, notaries, legal personnel, and judges and prosecutors. The number of judges and prosecutors, which was around 9,000 in 2002, has increased almost threefold to nearly 25,000 today. Undoubtedly, it is important that this numerical growth is accompanied by quality, and that quantity is supported by quality. In this regard, the training of those who supervise the manifestation of justice is a separate and significant issue,” he evaluated.

Stating that law has become institutionalized to a certain extent and that one can now speak of a traditional education and methodology for it, Erdoğan said, “However, we all know that this education does not guarantee becoming a good judge, a good prosecutor, or a good lawyer. We must make this distinction very well. Law faculties teach ideal and statutory law. Professional knowledge, skills, and competencies require efforts that go beyond faculty education. Professional maturity and adequacy are skills that develop by practicing that profession. They are values that combine knowledge with wisdom and insight,” he said.

Erdoğan pointed out that experience is the bridge that connects values, remarking, “A saying attributed to Hazrat Mevlana explains this distinction as follows: What young people cannot see in the mirror, the elderly read in a piece of brick. Yes, access to information is now very easy. We can quickly reach the information we want from a mobile phone or computer. But experience and wisdom still retain the quality of being a guide that prevents a person from losing their way among the pile of information. With the mechanism of judges and prosecutor assistants, we are trying to maintain this balance, to blend knowledge with experience,” he said.

“We aim to prepare you and those who follow you for the profession in the best possible way with our new training model”

President Erdoğan stated, “With our new training model, we aim to prepare you and those who will come after you for the profession in the best possible way.” He explained that while the duration of candidacy was 2 years, they extended the duration with assistantship to 3 years. They increased the academic training period from 7 months to 10 months. Thus, they will provide assistants with 300 hours more training. Additionally, they have intensified the examination and evaluation processes for assistants. In order to develop research, analytical thinking, reasoning, and writing skills, they have imposed a thesis preparation obligation on judges and prosecutor assistants. Thus, assistants will undergo a comprehensive 3-year training that is intensive, strong in theory and practice, consisting of 10 months of academy training and 26 months of training alongside mentor judges and prosecutors,” he said.

Erdoğan stated that the definition of a judge in the Mecelle, one of the cornerstones of Turkish law, is very succinctly stated: “According to this definition, which still inspires current searches even 150 years after its enactment, a judge is wise, perceptive, upright, trustworthy, respectable, and steadfast in the face of difficulties. In today’s Turkish, it is expected that judges possess a wise, perceptive, upright, reliable, respectable, and steadfast character when faced with challenges.

These values and qualities are acquired to a certain extent through knowledge and education, but more importantly, through experience. I believe that at the end of the two-year period spent in the master-apprentice relationship, our judges and prosecutors assistants will be fully prepared for their positions at the bench. I congratulate the 1,076 judges and prosecutors assistants who started their training last week and wish them great success from God.”

“A well-established judiciary is also a guarantee of economic development and growth”

Stating that he congratulates the ministers, deputies, and experts who contributed to all stages of the system from its intellectual preparation to its implementation, Erdoğan said, “We are carrying out very comprehensive studies on almost every aspect of justice. Here, I want to state this fact clearly and unequivocally: One of the conditions for living together in a society is to create, implement, and oversee the law of this unity. However, wherever there are humans, conflicts and contradictions are also inevitable. Even if undesirable, crimes are committed, and legal needs arise. The rule of law requires quick, correct, and definitive responses to these disputes and conflicts. A fair and effective judicial system is the institutional framework for this. A well-established, objective, independent, and impartial judiciary is especially a guarantee of economic development and growth.”

President Erdoğan continued, “We have made great efforts for the rooting of an independent, impartial, fair, and effective justice system in our political journey, which we embarked on by linking the concepts of justice and development. We have always kept our reform will alive in this direction. Remember that there were courthouses cramped in one floor of government lodges. This is now history. We have changed the face of justice with modern courthouse buildings. We have brought speed and ease to services with digital transformation. We have renewed the legislation that lagged behind the times and needs. With the increasing budget share, we have provided higher quality and in-service opportunities. We have strengthened the public’s access to justice by establishing new courts.”

Emphasizing that they have broadened the scope of mediation and dispute resolution methods, Erdoğan stated that they have been working hard to establish a justice system where the right belongs to the rightful, not the powerful. Erdoğan said, “Despite all the investments that make a difference in justice services, we have said from the beginning that it is about humans. We said, ‘Let the human live so that the state can live.’ Today, we say first human, everything is for humans. Let us not forget that the subject and capital of justice is human. No matter how meaningful other investments are, we see the improvements we have made in the quality of justice services as our greatest achievement. We will further develop this.”

President Erdoğan stated that they will continue their path by taking new steps according to the demands, expectations, and grievances rising from society and setting new goals for themselves. “We do not lose sight of this truth for a moment. Turning the courthouse door into the door of justice requires constant work, tracking society, and keeping the reform will alive. Carrying the banner of rights and justice without letting it fall to the ground requires struggle and self-renewal. This is what we are after,” he said.

“Used as a tool of guardianship”

Expressing that the judiciary has caused great suffering to this nation by being instrumentalized in the past, Erdoğan said: “Since 1960, the judiciary in this country has been used, I regret to say, as a means of limiting politics, directing politics, and as a tool of guardianship. In times of coups, our democracy, especially justice, has been killed. Trust in justice has been destroyed. The shame of the decisions made by the Yassıada courts and the 12 September courts has not left our justice system for years. The legal murders committed during the 28 February period continued to darken the conscience of the nation for years. The image of the judiciary, which turned into a tool used by guardians to discipline the nation, has inflicted deep wounds on Turkish democracy. We remember very well the reckless acts of FETÖ militants during the December 17-25 police judiciary initiative and the July 15 betrayal. We are still paying the price for the damage caused to this country by those who looked to the organization and guardianship centers rather than to law and conscience when making decisions. We are determined not to let our country and nation face such trials again. No matter how much we clean our state from the apparatus of guardianship and the remnants of FETÖ, we will continue to fight without losing our attention and caution.”

“Today, you are at the entrance of the profession you have dreamed of. At the end of the judges and prosecutors assistants period, each of you will don the robe you deserve and take your place at the bench,” Erdoğan said, adding, “I wish you all great success in this challenging journey you embark on. May your provision be knowledge, your guide be reason and conscience, and your destination be justice. When you take your place at the bench tomorrow, you will look into many cases, whether big or small, important or insignificant. Regardless of the subject, content, or nature of each event, case, or file that comes before you, you must remember that we will touch a human life. No one wishes to be in conflict with others without reason. However, if a dispute arises and the door of the court is knocked on out of necessity, everyone expects to be treated with respect and to be assured of their rights. The fair resolution of disputes does not only protect the legitimate interests of the parties but also repairs and puts back in place a piece that is broken in the order of society. There is a much greater social benefit beyond the satisfaction of the parties in establishing justice. We must naturally regard the curiosity and interest of large segments of society in addressing information and injustice. If it is written on the rulings that our courts have decided in the name of the Turkish nation, it is quite natural to consider the social sensitivities in their cases. We all know very well that decisions that do not soothe the conscience of society cannot contribute to the construction of social peace and tranquility. We have seen countless examples of this in the past. We still see it from time to time today,” he said.

“The place of the criminal is not the streets, but the prisons”

Stating that some bad examples that serve the perception of impunity are unfortunately encountered in society, Erdoğan said, “We are striving to minimize their ratio by doing whatever is necessary as the executive and legislative. I want to emphasize very clearly: The place of a person who commits a crime against the property, honor, and life of the nation is not the streets, but the prisons where they will serve their sentence to the fullest extent. If there is a problem or deficiency in this regard, it is our duty to remedy it.”

“They have turned into an operational tool”

Regarding social media platforms, Erdoğan stated, “Of course, while saying this, I separate malicious campaigns with no weight in the balance of conscience from the shows conducted for the sake of ratings and interaction. Social media, where no rules have moral boundaries, has increasingly turned into a large operational tool. Unfortunately, the fundamental principles of justice have been the first victims of this interaction-focused new media order. In the virtual realm, execution squads positioned against each other always find a person, an incident, and an institution to target each day. From the violation of the presumption of innocence to excessive generalizations, many unlawful acts are being committed in the name of law, including the targeting of our judges and prosecutors and character assassinations. I believe we must collectively prevent this wave, which harms not only the justice institution but also the internal peace of society. I especially want to emphasize the benefit of a rapid process method to ensure that the measure of justice and conscience is not a captive of any other feelings,” he evaluated.

Erdoğan emphasized that they respect the right to news and information in every event that draws the public’s attention. “However, while making publications that satisfy the public’s curiosity, it is everyone’s responsibility to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation. The aim of the confidentiality rule in criminal investigations is not to cover the truth but to prevent interventions that would hinder the emergence of the material truth. We find it beneficial to look at recent events that occupy the agenda of our nation and burn the hearts of all 85 million from these perspectives. As humanity and society, where are we headed? We should be more composed in these days when we frequently ask this question, and we should support the manifestation of justice. We must not allow political and ideological calculations to be made over the bodies of innocent children, the value systems of the nation, the family institution that is the foundation of society, and religious institutions,” he stated.

Erdoğan expressed that justice should not be sacrificed for the sake of ratings and interaction, stating, “I believe that everyone, especially our media, should show maximum sensitivity regarding this issue. I want to specifically express here that we are carefully observing the hypocrisy of those who have not raised their voices for the thousands of babies, children, and young people killed by the separatist terrorist organization. Those who rushed to justify the terrorist acts of separatist murderers until yesterday are now trying to teach the nation lessons in conscience, morality, and humanity over a brutal murder. We leave to the judgment of our nation those who have become involved in exploitative politics to the extent of making distinctions even among the killed children. Our nation sees with its deep wisdom where everyone stands and knows very well what everyone is trying to do.”

During the ceremony, 28th Term Judicial Jurisdiction Judge Candidate Emine Tagıl presented a painting she made with oil paints to President Erdoğan. Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç and President of the Turkish Justice Academy Muhittin Özdemir also attended the ceremony.