Turkey’s Parliament to Vote on Pension Hike & Student Amnesty This Week

Ankara – Turkey’s Grand National Assembly (TBMM) has a packed agenda this week, with lawmakers set to discuss a new judicial reform package known as the 12th Judicial Package [194997]. Among the key proposals are a raise to the minimum pension and a student amnesty bill, which would allow students who have been expelled or suspended to return to their studies [194997]. Parliament will also consider new rules aimed at preventing bank accounts from being used in fraud schemes [194997].

Separately, sources from the pro-Kurdish DEM Party said Monday that a delegation is expected to hold a new meeting with imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan after July 13, following the presentation of a framework law to political parties [194011]. The leader of Turkey’s Saadet Party, Mahmut Arıkan, also visited jailed former HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş at Edirne Prison on Thursday, describing him as an important figure who could contribute to social reconciliation within a democratic and legitimate political framework [194973]. Demirtaş has been imprisoned since 2016 [194973].

In other developments, the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) has appointed Dr. Pınar Mualla Saip as the new head of its Central Council for the 2026-2028 term following the association’s 78th General Congress [190981]. Meanwhile, a civil platform has called on Turkey’s Constitutional Court to re-examine the Narin Güran case, demanding a comprehensive review to ensure the right to a fair trial is respected [194989].

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