Turkey’s former interior minister Süleyman Soylu, who is currently a lawmaker from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), has requested to have his parliamentary immunity removed amid allegations by opposition politicians and journalists about his links to mafia and crime groups, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Thursday.
AKP İstanbul lawmaker Soylu on July 26 asked in a petition presented to Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş that his parliamentary immunity be removed. If his request is granted, Soylu may face trial in the event of an indictment on the allegations against him.
Soylu said his request was aimed at fighting “evil forces that aim to create doubt, uncertainty and questions in the eyes of the public through defamation and accusations” against him.
The former minister accused current and former leaders as well as other members of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) of conducting an “organized and systematic defamation campaign” against him. Soylu also alleged that the CHP campaign serves the purpose of terrorist organizations threatening Turkey’s unity.
“In the face of slander, defamation and smear campaigns conducted against me regarding my time in office, I request the lifting of my legislative immunity for the sake of justice and the pursuit of truth,” Soylu said.
Meanwhile, journalist Deniz Zeyrek criticized Soylu’s move at a time when the parliament is in summer recess as being “show business.”
The legislature will return from summer recess on October 1.
“The procedure for lifting immunity is clear in this country. First, a crime occurs. The prosecutor sends an investigation report to the Justice Ministry and the ministry sends the report to parliament. … Süleyman Soylu should go and file a petition with the prosecutor’s office, not the parliament. … This is just show business,” Zeyrek said.
The prosecution of members of Parliament has been possible since the CHP and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) lent support to a 2016 proposal submitted by the ruling AKP on removing deputies’ immunity from prosecution. The immunity of all deputies who faced prosecution was lifted in May 2016.
Soylu’s political career has been marked by controversy and allegations of wrongdoing. Earlier this year, investigative journalist Cevheri Güven released recordings implicating Soylu in a $20 million bribery scandal. Soylu is accused of accepting bribes from Ahmed Nazari, an Iranian involved in a large-scale investment scam, and Halil Falyalı, a slain casino boss known for his illegal gambling and drug trafficking operations. The bribes allegedly facilitated Turkish citizenship for Nazari and protected both individuals from police investigations.
During Soylu’s tenure as interior minister, Turkey also faced allegations of involvement in international drug trafficking, with mob boss Sedat Peker accusing Soylu and other officials of facilitating cocaine networks in 2021. Peker had previously claimed that it was connections to his family that had helped Soylu rise through the ranks of the right-wing True Path Party (DYP) before he joined the ruling AKP in 2012 at the invitation of then-prime minister and current president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. He also claimed that Soylu helped him avoid police prosecution by notifying him that an investigation was being prepared against him, before he fled Turkey in early 2020. The mob boss further said Soylu previously told people that he and Erdoğan “liked” Peker.
Soylu’s departure from the ministry had brought his alleged involvement in international drug trafficking and ties to mafia groups into the spotlight, leading to significant changes in the Turkish police force and crackdowns on international drug rings.
Soylu was appointed interior minister shortly after a coup attempt in Turkey in July 2016. He was the architect of a massive purge and arrest of thousands of non-loyalist citizens on bogus terrorism or coup charges.
He was elected to parliament in the May 2023 general election.