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Corruption in Turkey

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Corruption in Turkey
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Corruption in Turkey is an issue that affects the accession of Turkey to the European Union.[1][2] Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index scores 180 countries according to their perceived level of public sector corruption on a scale of 0 (very corrupt) to 100 (very honest).[3] Since the current scale was introduced in 2012, Turkey's score has fallen from its highest score of 50 (2013) to its lowest, current score of 34 (2023 and 2024), its lowest score since the current version of the Index began in 2012. When the 180 countries in the Index were ranked by their score (with the country perceived to be most honest ranked 1), Turkey ranked 107 in 2024.[4] For comparison with regional scores, the best score among Eastern European and Central Asian countries[Note 1] was 53, the average score was 35 and the worst score was 17.[5] For comparison with worldwide scores, the best score was 90 (ranked 1), the average score was 43, and the worst score was 8 (ranked 180).[4]

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Corruption cases

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The 1998 Türkbank scandal led to a no-confidence vote and the resignation of Prime Minister Mesut Yılmaz. Although Yılmaz was investigated by Parliament, a five-year statute of limitations prevented further action.[6][7] On 17 December 2013, the sons of three Turkish ministers and many prominent businesspeople were arrested and accused of corruption.

Following the closure of the Welfare Party in 1998, its leaders were required to return to the state the 896 billion Turkish Lira (rounded up to 1 trillion Turkish Lira) in treasury aid they held. This name was given to the lawsuit filed after the party failed to return the treasury aid to the state. Investigators in the case alleged that the money was presented as spent using forged documents. As a result of the case, Welfare Party leader Necmettin Erbakan was sentenced to 2 years and 4 months in prison for corruption . Sixty-eight Welfare Party leaders received prison sentences.

Another notable corruption scandal involved the arrest in 2025 of over 120 officials from the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), including former İzmir Mayor Tunç Soyer and İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.[8] The officials were implicated in the alleged tender rigging and fraud in municipal contracts. The opposition party, however, considers the arrest as politically-motivated. İzmir is considered a stronghold for opposition to Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.[9]

Another major scandal centers around the assassination of Halil Falyalı, a casino magnate in Northern Cyprus, and the subsequent revelations by his former financial manager, Cemil Önal. Önal alleged that Falyalı funneled millions of dollars in bribes to Turkish officials, including members of Erdoğan’s inner circle.[10] He was assassinated on February 5, 2025 in The Hague.[10]

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Anti-corruption Legislation

Anti-Corruption legislation includes Turkey's Criminal Code which criminalizes various forms of corrupt activity, including active and passive bribery, attempted corruption, extortion, bribing a foreign official, money laundering and abuse of office. Nevertheless, anti-corruption laws are poorly enforced, and anti-corruption authorities are deemed ineffective.[11] There is a lack of protection for whistleblowers.[12]: 6 

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See also

Notes

  1. [N 1]
    Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Russia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan

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