The State of Emergency Procedures Investigation Commission so far has received more than 100,000 complaints from people who have either been suspended or dismissed from their duties under cabinet decree since the state of emergency was declared in July 2016.
The commission received 101,304 complaints regarding dismissals, suspensions and various other decisions made under presidential decree since the beginning of the state of emergency. The Constitutional Court has so far transferred more than 70,000 cases to the State of Emergency Procedures Investigation Commission where the applicants may pursue further legal options before heading to the Constitutional Court.The first decision by the commission should be announced in two weeks and the deadline to file a complaint is Oct. 23.
The commission, established to investigate the affiliations with terrorist groups or relevant suspects of every applicant, is headed by Justice Ministry Undersecretary Judge Selahaddin Menteş. On May 22, the commission started to investigate the complaints that had been filed as well as any suspected affiliations the suspect may have with terrorist groups or individuals, which will be considered criteria for further investigation during the probe.
Apart from seven members of the investigation commission, it is believed that more than 200 people are working around the clock to finalize decisions regarding the complaints. Three members of the commission have been appointed by Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, one by the Justice Ministry, one by the Interior Ministry and two by the Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK).
Special security measures have been taken with regard to files that are classified according to complaints in respect to various institutions and organized according to nine, color-coded categories. The police, the Ministry of National Education (MEB) and the Interior Ministry will be blue, red and yellow, respectively, while the Ministry of Health, the Prime Ministry, the Justice Ministry and the National Defense Ministry will be turquoise, brown, maroon and green, respectively. For all other applications, a blue file will be used. On the other hand, a grey file will be used for applications from the Higher Education Board (YÖK), the Supreme Court of Appeals and the Council of State.
The commission is authorized to request any information and documents from public institutions and judicial authorities with the exception of documents which are subject to confidentiality as part of an ongoing investigation or otherwise-classified state secrets. Public institutions and judicial authorities are obliged to immediately provide the requested information to the commission and facilitate any inquiries.