The President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has completely disavowed any responsibility in the sentence of almost three years in prison against the opposition leader and mayor of Istanbul for insulting the Judiciary and has recalled that the convicted has the possibility to appeal to the Supreme Court.
The Turkish judiciary has sentenced on Wednesday Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), to two years and seven months in prison for insulting members of the country’s Supreme Electoral Council (YSK). In previous court hearings, Imamoglu has denied insulting council members and said his words were a response to those of Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, whom he allegedly called an «idiot.»
«This discussion has nothing to do neither with me, nor with my country,» Erdogan has replied, breaking his silence for the first time since the conviction. «This is a political issue around a person who has insulted the judges,» added the president, in statements reported by the Turkish newspaper ‘Hurriyet’.
«Judges are independent and that is not what I say, it is what the Constitution says. We don’t have to like every decision. We have criticized their decisions, but that does not give anyone the right to insult the judges and ignore their decision,» the president added during the inauguration of multiple infrastructure projects in Mardin, in southeastern Turkey.
Erdgoan also reminded that «the judicial process is not over yet» and that there is the possibility of filing an appeal to the Supreme Court. «If it is found that the initial decision was wrong, it will be changed,» he added.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
