Turkish court investigates alleged wiretapping

SUZAN FRASER Comments 0
Published: November 16, 2009

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — A Turkish court is investigating whether the Islamic-oriented government may have illegally ordered taps on telephones used by its judges, officials said Thursday.

The case highlights tension between Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has a strong electoral mandate, and Turkey's staunch secularists including those in the traditional power bases of the military and judiciary.

Court of Appeals Chief Judge Hasan Gerceker told reporters Thursday that the court was looking into allegations that government officials may have sidestepped the law in ordering wiretaps on court telephones.

"The permission of the head judge is required. Without that, the telephones of the Court of Appeals cannot be tapped," Gerceker said.

Turkish media reported that the Justice Ministry ordered the tapping of telephones of top judges and other members of the judiciary as part of an investigation into an alleged plot by hardline secularists to overthrow Turkey's government. Military officers, politicians and journalists are on trial for their alleged involvement in Ergenekon, a terrorist organization.

Citing a prosecutor's report, major newspapers and television stations said those targeted for eavesdropping included a senior judge who sought to prosecute President Abdullah Gul on corruption charges, the head of a group of judges and prosecutors that is critical of the government, and Istanbul's chief prosecutor, who is involved in the Ergenekon case.

Media organizations, including private NTV television and the pro-government Sabah newspaper, said an Istanbul court gave the order for telephone-tapping at the request of Justice Ministry inspectors in 2008.

Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin said he was unaware of the tapping.

"The orders for phone-tapping are secret. It is not possible for ministers to be informed," Ergin said. "The courts give the tapping orders while the (state-run) telecommunications agency implements them."

Fethi Simsek, who heads the telecommunications body, confirmed a court order for the state-run agency to tap into the switchboard of the appeals court, but said a technical hitch had prevented it from carrying out the order.

"No landline said to belong to the Court of Appeals was listened to," Simsek said.

Eavesdropping — legal or illegal — has always been widespread in Turkey.

But the latest allegations could embarrass the government, which in seeking European Union membership for Turkey is trying to win public support for granting more rights to Turkey's Kurdish minority and ending a long-running insurgency by Kurdish rebels.

Meanwhile, the Justice Ministry has been seeking to oust two people who were allegedly tapped — Judge Osman Kacmaz and prosecutor Omer Faruk Eminagaoglu — over allegations that include flouting confidentiality guidelines. The final decision rests with a state board that handles judicial appointments.