Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has directed harsh criticism at the seven members of the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) who announced their resignations en masse on Monday, saying the resignations were some sort of “show” and were “belated.” “The HSYK members resigned.

May their decisions be beneficial for Turkey. We are not supposed to hold their hands [to prevent them from resigning]. What they did was a perfect show,” the prime minister told his parliamentary group on Tuesday. Seven HSYK members -- four primary members and three alternate members -- quit their posts on Monday, arguing that the policies of the Ministry of Justice do not allow the board to function properly. But the fact that most of the members were due to retire in the next few weeks has raised questions over whether the resignations have reasons other than those that are the most obvious. “Claims that the Ministry of Justice does not allow the HSYK to function properly are groundless excuses. They were functioning properly till now, but their function was restricted all of a sudden?” he asked.According to the prime minister, the HSYK members felt quite comfortable when interfering in investigations carried out by prosecutors in Erzurum. “Weren't you the ones who interfered in every step taken by your colleagues in Erzurum? You were ‘functioning' properly there. Didn't you undertake similar interventions in other cities, too? You were also functioning there. But what has happened now to prevent you from functioning?” the prime minister asked, addressing the resigning HSYK members.Erdoğan was referring to a hasty decision made by the HSYK in February. The board decided to revoke the authority of four prosecutors in the eastern province of Erzurum after they initiated a probe into Erzincan Chief Public Prosecutor İlhan Cihaner. Cihaner was initially arrested due to the probe but was later released pending trial. The chief prosecutor faces charges concerning his membership in a terrorist organization and the falsification of documents.The HSYK has a bad record of intervention in ongoing investigations and cases aiming to shed light on Turkey's dark past. The board tried to remove Ergenekon prosecutor Zekeriya Öz from the case as well as more than 100 judges and prosecutors in the Sledgehammer, Poyrazköy, Cage and Temizöz cases, but the ministry strongly resisted the move. Ergenekon is a clandestine criminal organization accused of working to overthrow the government.The deliberations between the HSYK and the Ministry of Justice over the future of judges and prosecutors were suspended in August due to the board's insistent demands to get rid of judges and prosecutors working on Turkey's most important legal cases.The Ministry of Justice believes the removal of the judges and prosecutors would facilitate the release from prison of dozens of suspects charged as part of terror-related cases.Erdoğan also urged the resigning HSYK members to be “sincere” and explain the real reason behind their decisions. “Be frank and say publicly that you have resigned because you have more important plans. Say that you will focus on your ‘work' at the Supreme Court of Appeals and the Council of State,” he noted, addressing the board members.The resigning members have returned to their posts at the Supreme Court of Appeals and the Council of State. They are expected to run as candidates for more critical posts in the judiciary in the weeks to come. Kadir Özbek, for example, plans to run as a candidate for the head of the Supreme Court of Appeals.The prime minister also criticized HSYK members for standing against the nation's decision at the ballot box on Sept. 12. Turkey voted on a constitutional amendment package in the Sept. 12 referendum. The package also introduced changes to the structure of the HSYK. With the package, the HSYK will have 22 members instead of the current seven. Elections will be held next week to elect new members to the board. “They will or won't like it, but they'll have to accept the fact that the nation has the final word. And the nation had its final word on Sept. 12. Like us, the judiciary has to abide by what the nation has said,” he said.‘Resignations intended to protect individual interests'Orhan Gazi Ertekin, the co-chairman of the Union of Judges and Prosecutors for Democracy and Freedom, has said the HYSK resignations are aimed to protect individual rights and maintain the privilege of the high judiciary in Turkey.According to Ertekin, the resignations were belated. “A referendum was held on Sept. 12. Turkey shut down the old-HSYK era. I believe the HSYK members should have resigned on Sept. 13. Unfortunately, they failed to convince the public about the reason for the resignations,” he noted.Ertekin also said the resignations are intended to protect the members' individual interests. “With its new structure, the HSYK will be able to convene without the participation of its members coming from the Supreme Court of Appeals and the Council of State. Such conventions will no longer allow HSYK members to block deliberations with the Ministry of Justice,” he noted.He also added that former HSYK Deputy Chairman Özbek, who was one of board members to resign, should have talked about the problems of the judiciary during a press conference he called on Monday instead of complaining about the Ministry of Justice. “His speech has shown that members of the judiciary shouldn't talk,” he maintained. 13 October 2010, WednesdayALI ASLAN KILIÇ  ANKARA