International Kurultai on Turkic Legal History, organized by Justice Academy of Türkiye in cooperation with Turkish Historical Society, Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency and the Organization of Turkic States, kicked off on 6 December 2023 at the Nation’s Library of Presidency in Ankara.
The Kurultai started with the opening speeches by Mr. Muhittin Özdemir, President of the Justice Academy of Türkiye; Prof. Dr. Yüksel Özgen, President of the Turkish Historical Society; Ambassador Prof. Dr. Derya Örs, President of the Atatürk Supreme Council for Culture, Language and History; Mr. Sadi Jafarov, Deputy Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States and Mr. Yılmaz Tunç, Minister of Justice. Mustafa Şentop, the 29th Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye (TBMM), delivered the keynote speech at the Kurultai.
MINISTER TUNÇ: IN THE LAST 21 YEARS, WE HAVE RENEWED OUR FUNDAMENTAL LAWS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE AGE WITH THE REFORMS WE HAVE MADE AS A SILENT REVOLUTION
In his opening speech, Minister of Justice Mr. Tunç emphasised that Türkiye is located in a strategic geography and noted that, especially with the proactive foreign policy carried out in the last 21 years, a critical role has been assumed in the regional and global arena. Minister Tunç said, “We will continue to pursue a policy that defends equity and human rights in the world.”
Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç stated that with the establishment of the Organisation of Turkic States, the foundations of comprehensive cooperation among Turkic states were laid and added: “The establishment of the Organisation is an extremely important step taken not only to strengthen our emotional unity, but also to strengthen our relations in many areas such as political, economic, security and justice.”
“Stating that one of the areas of cooperation among the member countries of the Organisation is justice, Minister Tunç said that the Turkic World Union of Notaries, the Turkic Judicial Training Network and the Turkic University Union were previously established, and that the 2nd Council of Prosecutors General of the Organisation of Turkic States was held.”
Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç expressed that “In the coming process, I would like to express that it is beneficial to take the necessary steps for the establishment of the Turkic World Lawyers Union in order to ensure that our lawyers, who are one of the constituent elements of the judiciary and represent the defence, cooperate in professional matters.”
WE HAVE MADE REFORMS THAT CAN BE CONSIDERED AS A SILENT REVOLUTION
Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç stated that law has a history as old and ancient as civilisation and expressed that: "The legal history is also the history of civilisation."
In the early periods of human history, the need to regulate the relations between societies was met by simple traditional norms and rules, Minister Tunç said, and with the increasing complexity of societies over time, legal systems were formed.
Stating that the Turkic legal system has a deep-rooted history and has a unique character, Minister Tunç said: “The foundations of Turkic law started with the traditional legal understanding of the Turkic tribes in Central Asia. After the Turks embraced Islam, the Turkic law became acquainted with the Islamic law. At the same time, the fact that many civilisations ruled in different geographies of Anatolia has enriched our legal system. In the last periods of the Ottoman Empire, constitutional regulations were included in our system.”
Reminding that the constitutions of 1921 and 1924 and new fundamental laws were introduced to the Turkish legal system in the Republican era, Minister of Justice Tunç said, “In the last 21 years, we have renewed our fundamental laws in accordance with the requirements of the age and by taking into consideration the needs of our nation with the reforms we have made as a silent revolution. With the reforms we made, Turkish law has a legal system that adapts to national and international norms and is integrated with the contemporary world.”
MUHİTTİN ÖZDEMİR: THE REPUBLIC OF TÜRKİYE HAS BEEN FOUNDED ON DEEPLY-ROOTED TRADITIONS OF STATEHOOD AND JUSTICE
In his speech at the opening of the Kurultai, President of the Justice Academy of Türkiye Muhittin Özdemir said, 'For centuries, Western civilization and humanity have sought justice in nature, gods, and mythological concepts. The Turks living in the same period, on the other hand, determined the basic rules regarding the establishment and functioning of the state as customs, and put forward an understanding of justice embodied in the rules formed by the legal kurultais and those formed by themselves within society.
The lands of Central Asia, where the Turkic civilisation was born and flourished, raised scientists such as Al Biruni, al-Farabi, Avicenna, Ganjavi, Al-Khwarizmi, Ali Qushji, Yūsuf Balasaguni, who enlightened the world and broadened the horizons of humanity. Though they have passed into the eternal life, the legacy they left behind continues to enlighten not only Central Asia but also Anatolia.
We established the Turkic Judicial Training Network on 12 December 2022 with Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, with which we have very strong common history, language, belief and cultural ties. The Turkic Judicial Training Network has been a sincere indicator that we have demonstrated our will of solidarity, which is a requirement of our brotherhood law, in the field of justice and judiciary as in all areas.
The Organisation of Turkic States, which our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attaches great importance to, is not only an economic or political partnership, but also a great unity of heart. This unity showed that it is the rising power of the World with the 10th Summit of the Organisation held in Astana in November 2023, and the unwavering determination to increase cooperation and solidarity among the Turkic States was once again emphasised with the slogan ‘Turkic Era’.
As representatives of a high civilisation with a deeply rooted understanding of law and justice spanning centuries, we want to look at the Turkic history from the perspective of justice and law and raise awareness. We organized the Kurultai on the Turkic Legal History in order to discuss the texts, institutions and individuals that shaped the Turkic legal history and to contribute to new practices in this field, to provide a modelling opportunity for our state, justice and legal life, for young legal professionals and institutions. Also, distinguished members of the Turkic Judicial Training Network, distinguished guests from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, and distinguished participants from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and Hungary will also contribute to the Kurultai with their papers.
