Judicial reforms to play key role: Turkish president

By Burak Bir

ANKARA (AA) - Upcoming reforms designed to strengthen trust in Turkey’s judicial system will play an important role in the nation’s future, said the country’s president on Sunday.

"The reforms carried out with the aim of making our justice system work perfectly, in a complete manifestation of the law, strengthening trust in the judiciary, have an important place in our efforts to take our country to a brighter future," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a statement ahead of Monday’s opening of the new judicial year.

This year Turkey is set to carry through the Judicial Reform Strategy Document, a plan unveiled on May 30 to improve the working of the nation's judiciary.

Mentioning the defeated coup of 2016 by the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), Erdogan said since that time, the Turkish judiciary has passed a great test, proving itself to be the nation’s power in the fight against traitors.

The fight against FETO proves how “careful and brave” Turkey must be in the face of groups trying to capture the judiciary, he added.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Turkey accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.