TURKEY: Investigation into CHP Congress & more – 18th Feb 2025

Merhaba from Keswick Village! This is the Rorshok Turkey Update from the 18th of February twenty twenty-five. A quick summary of what's going down in Turkey.

This week, media outlets reported that, earlier in January, the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation into the congress of the main opposition, the Republican People's Party or CHP, held in November twenty twenty-three, where Özgür Özel, the party head, won the leadership race against Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. Authorities cited allegations of vote-buying during the election.

Prosecutors summoned Kılıçdaroğlu and a former CHP deputy, citing their public criticism of the congress. Kılıçdaroğlu’s lawyer stated he would not testify, insisting he had no involvement in any wrongdoing. The investigation could overturn the leadership election and pave the way for a government-appointed trustee to take over the CHP.

However, the investigation was called into question as it may be a political move to weaken the main opposition.

Speaking of the CHP, on Sunday the 16th, The ORC Research released its latest election poll, showing a narrowing gap between the ruling Justice and Development Party or AKP, and the CHP. The survey, conducted with over three thousand participants, found that only four parties would pass the electoral threshold, which is 7%.

The CHP led with 30%, followed closely by the AKP with 29%. The Nationalist Movement Party or MHP came in third with 9%, while the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy or DEM Party stood at 8% percent. Other parties, including the Victory Party, New Welfare Party, and Good Party, remained below the threshold.

The results suggest a competitive race, with smaller parties struggling for parliamentary representation.

On Sunday the 16th, a court rejected President Erdoğan’s lawsuit filed against Özgür Özel. Erdoğan had sought one million liras, which is around thirty thousand US Dollars, in damages, saying that Özel’s remarks at an Esenyurt rally defamed him.

In his speech, Özel criticized the arrest of the mayor of Esenyurt, calling it unlawful and politically motivated. He pointed out that the arrest showed a troubling slide toward dictatorship, which Erdoğan took as a personal attack.

The court ruled that Özel’s statements were harsh criticism rather than an attack on personal rights. It cited Constitutional Court and European Court of Human Rights precedents, emphasizing that public figures must tolerate strong criticism in a democratic society.

Going back to investigations for a bit, on Friday the 14th, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation into Ömer Aras, the Chair of the High Advisory Council of the Turkish Industry and Business Association or TÜSİAD, for allegedly spreading false information and attempting to influence the judiciary.

The move came after Aras’s speech on Wednesday the 13th at TÜSİAD’s General Assembly, where he criticized government oversight and blamed systemic failures for disasters like the Kartalkaya fire, which killed almost eighty people. He also condemned recent political crackdowns, including the removal of elected mayors and the arrests of journalists.

The Justice Minister accused him of interfering in politics and the legal system.

Talking about political crackdowns, on Thursday the 13th, the European Parliament condemned Turkey’s legal actions against opposition mayors and called for their release, acquittal, and reinstatement. Authorities have removed mayors from the CHP and the DEM Party over terrorism-related charges, which both parties deny.

European lawmakers criticized Ankara for replacing elected officials with government-appointed trustees and urged the European Commission to consider sanctions.

However, the government doesn’t seem to care much, as two days later, on Saturday the 15th, the Interior Ministry appointed the governor of Van as a trustee mayor, replacing Abdullah Zeydan, the mayor of Van from the DEM Party. A court sentenced Zeydan to nearly four years in prison on terrorism-related charges on Monday the 11th.

The decision sparked protests, with DEM Party members and locals holding a vigil. Police blocked a march led by several mayors and lawmakers, detaining over a hundred people. This marks the ninth removal of a DEM mayor since the twenty twenty-four elections, despite a previous Supreme Election Council ruling in Zeydan’s favor.

On that note about the DEM Party, on Sunday the 16th, a delegation from the party met with Masoud Barzani, the president of the Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP, in Iraq. The delegation discussed their ongoing talks with Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, about a potential disbanding of the group.

Barzani emphasized the importance of the peace process between Kurds and Turkey and offered his full support. Following this meeting, the delegation planned further talks with leaders of the KDP and of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.

In other news, last week, on Monday the 10th, Gökhan Sarıçam, an AKP lawmaker, made controversial remarks at an event in the central Kırşehir province, calling on citizens to “grab healthcare workers by the throat” over service dissatisfaction. This week, the video of his speech quickly spread across social media, drawing widespread backlash.

People accused him of inciting violence against healthcare professionals, while opposition figures condemned his rhetoric. Sarıçam’s remarks come amid ongoing tensions in Turkey’s healthcare sector, where doctors and nurses have protested poor working conditions and violence against medical staff.

Last Tuesday the 11th, news broke that Sedat Peker, an organized crime leader turned whistleblower, donated nearly two million liras, which is fifty thousand US Dollars, for the stem cell treatment of Ömer Korkmaz, a retired Special Operations Police officer who suffered paralysis. A fundraising campaign had been underway for Korkmaz’s medical expenses, with reports mentioning an anonymous donor covering half the goal. Peker later revealed through social media that he had made the donation via his lawyer.

Following the announcement, the deputy chair of the government ally MHP, publicly thanked Peker and wished Korkmaz a speedy recovery. The deputy chair’s move was unexpected, as Peker, once close with the government, turned into a whistleblower against top officials — straining ties with the government and its allies, like the MHP.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday the 12th, İş Gıda, the franchise operator for KFC and Pizza Hut in Turkey, declared bankruptcy with debts totaling almost eight billion liras, which is 220 million US dollars, and announced layoffs. The company, which ran over 500 restaurants in the country, blamed its collapse on Yum! Brands' termination of their partnership earlier in January.

Yum! Brands, the US-based parent company of the franchises, stated that İş Gıda failed to maintain food safety, operational efficiency, and financial stability, violating key franchise agreements. The decision led to the closure of the restaurants.

Onto some environmental news, on Sunday the 16th, Erol Kesici, the scientific advisor to the Turkish Association for the Conservation of Nature, warned that the water levels in the country’s many wetlands are dropping at an alarming rate. He said Turkey had lost wetlands equivalent to two Marmara Seas in the past fifty years.

He explained that mismanagement, over-extraction, pollution, and poor agricultural practices had drained major lakes and deltas. Protected wetlands under the Ramsar Convention had nearly halved, with some completely dried up.

Kesici stressed that unless Turkey modernized its water policies, worsening droughts would threaten food production, health, and ecosystems in the following years. He called for urgent reforms, stating that waiting for rain wasn’t a solution.

And to wrap up this edition, on Sunday the 16th, the French Church in the northwestern Bursa province, a historic site where Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Christians worshipped together, held its final service before closing. Authorities ordered its evacuation, citing earthquake risks.

The church, the only active Christian place of worship in Bursa, had been in use since two thousand four, following a two-year restoration. Officials argued that it was unsafe because of its location near underground water sources and a fault line. However, a geological report commissioned by the Bursa Protestant Church Foundation rejected this, stating the structure was stable. Still, an appeals court upheld the evacuation order.

Following the final service, the congregation moved to the foundation’s building, where worship will continue.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

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