Workers’ Party of Turkey Hatay MP Can Atalay has been stripped of his parliamentary seat.
TİP Hatay MP Can Atalay, who is currently in Marmara Prison in Silivri as part of the Gezi Trial, was stripped of his parliamentary seat.
The General Assembly of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey convened under the chairmanship of Deputy Speaker Bekir Bozdağ. The plenary voted for the parliamentary deputy Can Atalay to be stripped of his parliamentary seat following the decisions of the Constitutional Court and the Court of Cassation on TİP deputy Can Atalay.
A procedural debate was held before the vote. Taking the floor during the debate, TİP Chairman Erkan Baş said the following:
“If the Assembly Council does not recognize the constitution, there is no Assembly Presidency here. When this resolution enters the minutes of the Assembly, your parliamentary membership will be questioned. The President, ministers will be questioned, everything will be questioned. I want to ask one question. I ask all our citizens with a working mind, all our citizens with a conscience. Now the decision will be read, Can Atalay’s parliamentary seat will be revoked. I mean, Can Atalay is an MP, isn’t he? How can you keep him in prison for 9 months? If he is an MP, why is he in prison, if he is not an MP, what are you going to drop? It is an attempt beyond reason, conscience and law.”
Can Atalay’s first statement after the verdict
Can Atalay, who made statements on his social media account after the decision, said, “This happened, they did this too. Despite the clear provisions of the Constitution, which leave no room for any doubt, they “dropped” the parliamentary deputy of the elected Hatay deputy,” he said. “I am worried on behalf of my country,” Atalay said, adding, “I owe a debt to my country, to the people of Hatay, to the people who voted in the middle of a destroyed city. Even if it is under difficult conditions, even if our possibilities are very limited, I will try to be a translator for our people, especially in Hatay and the earthquake region, and for our citizens who live off their labor.