The “Human Rights Action Plan” (“Action Plan”) was shared with the public at the Human Rights Action Plan Presentation
Meeting on 2 March 2021 by the Presidency of the Republic.
Within the scope of the Action Plan, important regulations within the Turkish Legal System are envisaged, for the
purposes of improving judicial processes, compliance with international law and protection and development of human
rights.
The most important regulatios expected to be implemented in the near future, within the scope of the Action Plan
comprising of 9 goals, 50 targets and 393 actions, are discussed under the relevant headings below:
Regulations on Civil Proceedings-
Access to the records of the Social Security Institution through the information system will be provided in order to
ensure that labor lawsuits finalize faster.
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The scope of mediation will be expanded.
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The "e-Trial" application will be used in all civil courts.
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Specialized courts related to areas such as finance and trade unions will be established.
Regulations on Criminal Proceedings-
A vertical appeal procedure will be introduced for decisions to arrest and other injunctions rendered by criminal courts
of peace.
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Judicial control measures will be subjected to a maximum time limit.
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Crime scene investigations, forensic searches and physical seizures will be recorded digitally.
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Regarding offences prosecuted on complaint, a regulation is to be introduced regarding the dismissal of the proceedings,
in case of not showing up at the court without an excuse despite having received summons with explanations.
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Practices such as arrest and detention outside of working hours only to obtain deposition, detention in the middle of
the night at a hotel will be discontinued.
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Specialized courts related to tax and cyber crimes will be established.
Regulations on Administrative Proceedings-
Administrative courts will be obliged to draft a reasoned decision within 30 days.
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For applications made to the administration, the administration's response time will be reduced from 60 days to 30 days.
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An administrative settlement procedure will be introduced to resolve disputes between natural and legal persons and the
state as fast and with the lowest cost as possible.
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Specialized courts related to fields such as zoning and expropriation will be established.
Regulations on Higher Ranked Proceedings-
Chambers of appeal will be given the authority to overturn decisions rendered by courts of first instance.
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Periods for filing an appeal will start from the date of delivery of the reasoned decision to the parties.
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Attorneys will be able to file an individual application to the Constitutional Court in electronic form.
Regulations on Notices-
Citizens of the Republic of Turkey living abroad will also be included in the electronic notification system.
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Indictments will also be delivered to the victims and the defendants.
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In administrative cases, the notification to the parties of information and documents that are subsequently introduced
into the file will be mandatory.
Regulations on Business World-
Public and private sector employees will be considered on leave during their religious holidays.
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An “Investment Ombudsmanship” will be established in order to render decisions swiftly on the settlement of disputes
between the administration and investors.
Regulations Aimed at Ensuring a More Effective Protection of Property Rights-
A system of monitoring, evaluation and supervision of zoning plans will be implemented, and efforts will be undertaken
to remedy grievances arising from acts regarding subdivisions within zoning plans.
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It will be made possible to file an application against acts of confiscation without expropriation before
governorates.
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Matters affecting property rights within the scope of administrative proceedings will be quickly resolved by a swift
judicial procedure.
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By ensuring that established judicial case law is regularly followed by the administration, the authority and powers of
public institutions will be increased in matters such as accepting applications and waiving cases.
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Public restrictions imposed by administrative institutions on the land registry will be opened for access by the owner
and interested parties in electronic form.
Regulations Aimed at Ensuring a More Effective Protection of Personal Data-
Records obtained by security measures in the form of detection and interception of communications will be destroyed in
the event of an acquittal.
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In order to ensure the protection of privacy within the scope of processing of personal data, the regulations included
in the Law on the Protection of Personal Data will be harmonized with the standards of the European Union.
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It will be made possible to appeal administrative fines issued per the decisions of the Personal Data Protection Board
and these decisions before administrative courts instead of criminal courts of peace.
In accordance with the Action Plan, no regulations have been adopted so far, and in parallel with the mentioned issues,
various regulations are expected to be introduced into the legal system before the Grand National Assembly of
Turkey.
Please click
here to access the full text of the speech delivered by the President at the Action Plan presentation
meeting.
Bilge Binay Kanat, Senior Associate
Asu Motur, Associate
Burak Batı, Associate
Orçun Turan, Legal Intern
Işılay Işık, Legal Intern