New judicial year launched amid public confidence concerns on justice

The public has lost its confidence in the judicial system when the post-coup attempt crackdown on the Fethullah Gülen network has revealed that a third of the judicial members were affiliated with illegal acts, the head of the Supreme Court of Appeals has said. 

Speaking at the judicial year opening ceremony on Sept. 5 in Ankara, İsmail Rüştü Cirit vowed to carry out judicial processes against the coup plotters within the principles of democracy.

"Although the dismissal of judges and prosecutors who are members of terrorist organizations is an utmost achievement, the fact that about one third of judges and prosecutors were in the middle of terrorist activities have made people lose confidence in the judicial system," Cirit said.

"Even the possibility that members of a profession which the public should trust most, acting in line with the goals of a terror organization, is by itself enough for the public to be surprised and shaken," Cirit said.

"Judicial independence cannot be achieved in a system where the public does not have trust in the judiciary," he added.

Judicial members to be tried within principle of law

Defining terror as the biggest obstacle to democracy, Cirit devoted his opening speech to fight against terror.

Stating that the coup d'états in Turkey's history have damaged Turkey's democracy, "in those times, our judicial authorities had not given a good account of themselves," said Cirit.

"The top judicial authorities have especially been silent about illegal activities. Apart from being silent, they supported those activities, legitimizing them," he said. 

He added that the judicial process for judicial members accused of affiliation with illegal...