The Spirit of the Police Laws in Turkey: Legislative Discourses, Instruments and Mentality

27 December 2013

“The Spirit of the Police Laws in Turkey: Legislative Discourses, Instruments and Mentality” is a discussion of the quality of policing in Turkey as is laid out by laws and the authority and powers given to the police. It aims to uncover the dynamics that extend or restrict police authorities through regulations. Looking at police laws in this manner unearths clues – albeit at the level of discourse – about the mentality of policing, the elements of the conceptualizations of “crime,” “criminal,” “order” and “security” within the police force, and the grounds that legitimize police authority.
We hope that the report will lead to a more fruitful discussion of the limits of police powers and duties together with the problems of insufficient oversight and impunity.