WHAT IS THE RIGHT TO COMPLAIN AND WITHDRAWAL?
The right to complain is the right of the victim or the injured person to apply to the competent authority within the legal time limit for the investigation or prosecution of the crimes following the complaint. The Prosecutor’s Office or law enforcement officials cannot initiate an investigation directly and spontaneously about crimes that are subject to complaints. In order to initiate an investigation, the victim or the person injured by the crime must file a complaint.
Withdrawal from the complaint is the withdrawal of the complaint by the victim or the injured person, who uses the right to complain, by giving up the investigation and prosecution of the crime.
CAN THE RIGHT TO COMPLAINT AND WITHDRAW A COMPLAINT BE USED BY OTHERS?
The right to complain is a right that is strictly attached to the individual and cannot be used by anyone else. The person injured by the crime or the victim of the crime should use the right to complain personally. For this reason, the right to complain does not pass to the heirs, but if the person complained about his health and a lawsuit was filed and then passed away, then the heirs may be involved in the lawsuit.
Withdrawal from a complaint is closely tied to the person, like the right to complain, so it cannot be used by anyone else. The complaining victim or the person who has been harmed by the crime will be able to withdraw their complaint personally.
WHAT IS THE COMPLAINT RIGHT PERIOD?
The exercise of the right of complaint in crimes whose investigation and prosecution is based on complaints is subject to a period of deprivation. According to the Turkish Penal Code, the victim of the crime or the person injured by the crime should use the right to complain within 6 months. If the right to complain is not exercised within the 6-month deprivation period defined in the law, the right to complain will cease and no investigation or prosecution will be carried out after this period.
The beginning of the complaint period will start from the day when the victim or harmed person knows or learns about the act and who the perpetrator is. For example, if the crime of violating the privacy of private life, which is a crime following a complaint, was committed on 01/01/2021 and the victim of the crime learned about the crime committed and the perpetrator on 15/01/2021, he/she will be able to use the right to complain until 15/07/2021.
TCK m. According to 73/4, if there is more than one person who is harmed or victimized by crime, even if one of these people passes the 6-month period of complaint, the other victims’ right to complain will not be lost.
