Before addressing the grave situation regarding Ekrem İmamoğlu's diploma issue, it's essential to examine the actions taken by the prosecutor's office and then the University Board of Trustees. With your indulgence, allow me to begin with an "anecdote," through which I can also remember a great Judge with respect and reverence, Osman Sunusi Öztemir.
'WHAT IS A PROSECUTOR? A PROPHET?'
I completed the serious crime section of my legal internship at the Istanbul 2nd High Criminal Court. The presiding judge was Osman Sunusi Öztemir. He provided invaluable contributions to my understanding of what law is and isn't, exceeding anything I learned in the faculty and something I will never forget. In those days, court clerks would dismiss trainee lawyers to avoid them wandering around, saying, "Come at the end of the month, sign your name, and collect your documents." The clerk said, "Osman bey wants you to continue your internship; he gives homework, expects you to attend all hearings," which was as if to say, "You're doomed, son."
One day, during a hearing, the prosecutor read a memorandum. The matter was this: Some former TİP (Workers' Party of Turkey) members were being prosecuted in the 2nd High Criminal Court (in the last election before September 12) for "spreading communist propaganda." Many former TİP members, including the same defendants, were also being prosecuted in the DGM (State Security Court) for being "members of the illegal TKP (Turkish Communist Party)." The DGM prosecutor sent a memorandum, saying, "Wait for our decision, then make your decision." The High Criminal Court prosecutor also expressed the view to "wait." Osman Sunusi bey turned to the prosecutor and said, with his magnificent Siverek accent: "Prosecutor, prosecutor, you're mistaken! I don't mind for myself, but these children (we trainees) will learn wrong, and I fear that. What is the DGM? Is it God? It's not a court, that's clear. What is its prosecutor? A prophet? Has it sent us a verse? What waiting? Whether they are TKP members or not, I will look to see if there is communist propaganda or not; if there is a crime, then punishment; if there isn't, then acquittal. Finished."
IF THERE IS ANTI-LAW, EVERYONE IS GUILTY
Although the DGM no longer exists, the school of thought of prosecutors who see themselves as all-powerful is still alive. The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office instructed Istanbul University to "cancel Ekrem İmamoğlu's diploma." Administratively, prosecutors can only instruct their clerks and law enforcement units. Any actions exceeding this legal framework constitute "abuse of authority" and are a crime. But of course, for it to be a crime, there must be "law"; with "anti-law" prevailing, prosecutors cannot commit crimes, and all citizens are always guilty.
So what about the university? How does the university comply with a prosecutor's instruction? Some say there is pressure, heavy pressure, therefore. This is not true; if the prosecutors are giving that instruction, and the university's board members are complying with that instruction, this is not pressure but compliance with the working rules of the new regime being constructed. Pressure, is it not? For those who don't comply, of course, there are consequences; indeed, the Dean of the Faculty of Business Administration, Kamil Ahmet Köse, resigned. However, this act of integrity tells us not that those remaining are under pressure but that they have complied; if there were pressure, there would also be resignation.
NOT FROM PRESSURE, BUT FROM PROFIT, NOT INSTRUMENTALIZATION, BUT COLLABORATION
The diploma cancellation is legally null and void, so much so that it bears the signature not of the body authorized to make the decision but of the University Board of Trustees, which has no authority. Just as the instruction shows that the prosecutor is not "legally" a prosecutor, the decision also indicates that the signatories are not "university-related." Because the decision declares not that Ekrem İmamoğlu is not a university graduate but that the university is no longer a university. There is no point in proving that the decision is not legal; the decision does not show that "the judiciary has been instrumentalized." The judiciary was already instrumental. The decision indicates that the judiciary and universities are the government's partners in establishing the new regime; the main bureaucratic structures are not merely "errand boys." They do not just take instructions; they also share profits.
NOW THERE IS ONLY ONE PERSON WITH A DIPLOMA!
In this situation, the CHP General Chairman's initial statement, which included the phrase "don't despair," expressing confidence in the administrative courts and the Council of State, is a bit out of place; if there was any confidence to be placed in the judiciary, even at a marginal level, the prosecutor's instruction would not have been followed, the Dean would not have resigned. It is enough to remember what happened to those dismissed by Decree Laws; the judiciary declared with countless decisions that the fundamental rights and freedoms of people condemned to "eat tree roots" did not exist from that day to this.
The time to talk and argue about diplomas is neither the time nor the opportunity. İmamoğlu, whose diploma was canceled during the day, is now in custody with serious charges. Most importantly, he is accused of aiding the illegal PKK/KCK organization. "Terror," that is, in Turkey, "terror" means "Kurd" above all else.
THE GOAL IS NOT ONLY THE CANDIDACY FOR THE PRESIDENCY
Of course, the first meaning of all that is happening is that İmamoğlu will be standing as a candidate against Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the first presidential election in the future. "Will Erdoğan be a candidate? Let's see," will be said immediately; if he wants to be, he will be as he has been until now. Will the judiciary prevent it? Even in his last candidacy, when politics said, "We will not discuss whether he has the right to run," what judiciary?
But this is not the only issue; there is more to it. Before moving on to the excess, it is necessary to mention a widespread interpretation: It is said that the government is making a big mistake. Just as it was done to Erdoğan in the past, now cutting off İmamoğlu's path strengthens him and opens his way. First, this view assumes that the balance of law and lawlessness, as it existed "in the past," still exists today, and then assumes that the political possibilities that existed in the past still exist today. Much blood, tears, gas bombs, and bombs have passed under and over the bridge. Turkey has come a long way in constructing the new regime it entered after June 2015. Erdoğan himself, with an understanding that has embraced the logic of "state of emergency law," wanted to prevent it; İmamoğlu is being attacked with the logic of "anti-law."
IN A "CITIZEN-LESS" REGIME, THERE IS NEITHER PUBLIC NOR PUBLIC OPINION
The new regime has no citizens; therefore, it has no public. The new regime, like all neo-liberal society and state designs, does not rely on citizens and public opinion, even on paper, but it depends upon an understanding of conflicting parties; therefore, as Bush, the global lord of the neo-cons, once said, it is walking its path with the motto "Either you are with us, or you are the enemy." Those who do not comply with this in the judiciary and bureaucracy can, at most, resign if not dismissed.
Now we can move on to excess: The issue is not only blocking Ekrem İmamoğlu; there is both the idea of preventing a new Ekrem İmamoğlu from emerging and the problem of closing the doors of "getting Kurdish votes," which the CHP has been pursuing since 2019, firmly in the local elections and successfully in the general elections. The "excess" side of the issue is also directly related to the "process" started by Devlet Bahçeli on October 1. Bahçeli and everyone invited the "opposition," the CHP, to support the process. Still, again, Bahçeli and everyone knows that when the process is completed, that is, when the "violence and conflict" ground, in Öcalan's words, is canceled and the "law and politics ground" begins to open, the opposition will benefit from this as much as the government. Öcalan's call was called "Peace and Democratic Society." The government aims to cripple the main opposition party before the initiative, which it feels obliged to take due to regional developments, especially Syria, is completed. The first practical step of the pressure on the CHP was appointing a trustee and the arrest of Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Özer.
In contrast, pressure on the municipalities continued, and a diploma net was woven around İmamoğlu. At the same time, it was no secret that preparation for the demolition around the word "terror" was being made; it is now an open secret. Before the PKK lays down its arms and dissolves itself, the compelling new political generation of İmamoğlu and CHP desired to be pushed from the political scene with the "terror" master key into the criminal region. The tariffs of lawlessness (extraordinary law), which were once applied only to the Kurds, are now valid for everyone, no matter how Turkish they are, no matter how much they are the descendants of Topal Osman, a historical Turkish nationalist figure.
PUTTING EVERYONE IN A DEADLOCK
If the parliamentary wing of Kurdish politics were to show solidarity with CHP against these unlawful actions, the peace process would face threats; if it refrains, it would be giving up on the "political and legal ground" before that ground even takes shape. This is the essence and summary of the plan: to put everyone in a deadlock. AK Party, especially after 2010, has paid special attention to preventing groups that could pose a political threat from strengthening their activities and eliminating their potential to interact/cooperate/show solidarity with one another, which is in line with this plan. Looking at the latest wave we are witnessing and experiencing, we see that the CHP has been added alongside the DEM Party – which has not yet been freed from heavy pressures – as a target of repression, and efforts to suppress workers' struggles have never been abandoned. When there are no "terrorist organizations" left, we will, of course, see where the absolute terror is coming from, but judging by the current picture, everything is being done to prevent us from seeing this.
THE UNMENTIONED DIMENSION OF ISOLATION
Before coming to an end, it is also necessary to mention that the isolation of Abdullah Öcalan is still ongoing: Isolation includes not only a vital issue such as laying down arms but also preventing Öcalan's views and thoughts from being conveyed to the public in the manner required, there is another dimension of equal importance: We do not know Öcalan's conditions for being informed, and, probably, most of what is happening outside is not conveyed to him. Even if it were expressed, I am not saying that Öcalan will give up the decision to lay down arms because the text of the call is not a bargaining text but a strategic fundamental decision text. Still, even if it were conveyed, he would better evaluate the movements aimed at destroying the "law and politics ground." He would shape the struggle strategy accordingly. Isolation is being maintained to continue to put everyone in a corner. It is unknown whether the expected message will come at Newroz. Still, it seems that even if it does come, it will come to an environment without Newroz.
LAY DOWN ARMS, TAKE OWNERSHIP OF THE STRUGGLE
Finally, let me finish by mentioning that "the state has agreed with Öcalan, the CHP will be pruned and continue strongly on the road to power." If there were an "agreement" of this nature, the isolation of Öcalan would end, which is an infallible indicator. Those who chase after the empty claim that "Öcalan will be released," those who think that they know politics by rote by saying, "But what do the families of the martyrs say," and those who turn to the servility of "We also support it, but we need to know what will be given," are going the wrong way. Those who see the need to lay down arms must have the legal and political demands necessary for Öcalan to play his role strongly. The call was based on laying down arms, not abandoning the struggle; it was based on strengthening the struggle and, therefore, categorically excluded arms. If it is not said that the PKK should not lay down its arms so that we can continue to exert pressure as we want, these objections do not make sense, nor does the increase in pressure. "The struggle for peace and democracy" must be owned by people, groups, ethnicities, peoples, and nations. Otherwise, the pressure and dictatorship regime will continue its construction by reading what it knows; in the same way, if a "Terror-free Turkey" is desired, the ways and methods of terrorizing must be abandoned. If what is wanted is not "Terror-free Turkey, lawless government, helpless citizen," that is.
NOTES
1
Prof. Ali Ulusoy has written extensively on the powers of prosecutors, please see:
https://t24.com.tr/yazarlar/ali-d-ulusoy/savcilik-idareye-islem-yapma-talimati-verebilir-mi,49075
2
İmamoğlu is accused of "aiding terrorism," but in reality, it seems he is paving the way for "terrorism" in the government (!) "Terror is not just a term that expresses the violence applied by organizations but also functions as a metaphor, a trope, that political sovereigns need when applying extraordinary law. Until recently, it only meant "Kurd," but now seeking votes from Kurds and succeeding in doing so also means "terror."
3
"Kent Uzlaşısı" (Urban Consensus) would not have been so terrorized by the government if it had remained limited to local elections. Still, it also has the potential to produce results in general elections.
4
Another scenario was discussed yesterday: The government is doing these things to allow Erdoğan to be a candidate again and to change the election method; if the CHP agrees, the process will be reversed. The government doesn't need anyone for either of these; those who do "these" will surely do them anyway.
5
The Istanbul Governorate's four-day ban on actions also threatened the Newroz celebration in the city; however, the governorate later announced that it would not affect the Newroz celebration. Of course, it is difficult to know how long the provisions of the statements will last in this doomsday environment. We hope it can be celebrated.
*This article was translated from Turkish to English for The Levant Files with the author's permission. The article was first published on the Artı Gerçek website on March 19, 2025.