Decision to release lawyers quashed
23 March 2016

Decision to release lawyers quashed

Türkiye

Lawyers for Lawyers was concerned to learn that on 22 March 2016, the 2nd Peace Judgeship quashed the decision of the Istanbul 1st Criminal Peace Judgeship to release 9 Turkish lawyers. New arrest warrants were ordered for four of the nine lawyers.

The arrest and release of 9 Turkish lawyers
In the early morning of 16 March 2016, police raided the houses and offices of 9 lawyers in Istanbul, Turkey. After the search, lawyers Ramazan Demir, İrfan Arasan, Ayşe Acinikli, Hüseyin Boğatekin, Şefik Çelik, Adem Çalışçı, Ayşe Başar, Tamer Doğan and Mustafa Rüzgar were arrested and taken into custody. They are all members of the Libertarian Lawyers Association (Özgürlükcü Hukukçular Derneĝi – ÖHD). Against one more lawyer an arrest warrant was ordered.
There has not been given any justification for these arrests and searches. The case file on the arrests is confidential. Allegedly the lawyers are arrested on suspicion of having ties with a terrorist organization.

On 19 March 2016, after a hearing that lasted around 13 hours, the Istanbul 1st Criminal Peace Judgeship decided to conditionally release the 9 lawyers.

New arrest warrants for four lawyers
The prosecutor objected the decision given by Istanbul 1st Criminal Peace Judgeship. On 22 March 2016, the 2nd Peace Judgeship quashed the decision to release the 9 lawyers following a hearing that only lasted a couple of hours. The accused lawyers and their defense lawyers were not heard during this hearing. Arrest warrants were ordered for four of the nine lawyers.

Concerns about the judicial harassment of lawyers in Turkey
Lawyers for Lawyers and Fair Trial Watch are gravely concerned about the continuing judicial harassment of lawyers in Turkey. All the lawyers that were arrested represent the 46 lawyers who were arrested in 2011 on suspicion of “working for, or belonging to, a terrorist organization”. A hearing in the trial against these lawyers took place only one day after the arrests, on 17 March 2016. The arrest of their lawyers means that they are deprived from their legal defense. On 18 March, L4L and FTW called on the Turkish authorities to immediately release the arrested lawyers.

Meer nieuws uit Türkiye

7 March 2024

First hearing in the trial against lawyer Süleyman Şahin: Diyarbakir 15.2.2024

Türkiye

On 15 February 2024, Lawyers for Lawyers representatives attended a hearing at the Diyarbakır 5th High Criminal Court, which marked the start of the trial against lawyer Mr Süleyman Şahin. As part of an international delegation, L4L was requested to

Lees verder
5 March 2024

Risks of impunity: hearing in Tahir Elçi case on 6 March

Türkiye

Lawyers for Lawyers expresses deep concern regarding the upcoming trial of the late human rights advocate Tahir Elçi, highlighting Turkey’s failure to ensure fair proceedings and the consequent risk of impunity. Mr. Elçi, a prominent Kurdish lawyer, was assassinated in

Lees verder
6 December 2023

Lawyers for Lawyers Monitored Final Hearing in the Trial of Berrak Çağlar – the Court Granted Full Acquittal.

Türkiye

On November 23, 2023, representatives of Lawyers for Lawyers observed the final hearing in the trial of lawyer Berrak Çağlar who was accused of being a member of an armed terrorist organization, following her expression of solidarity with her imprisoned

Lees verder
27 November 2023

International Delegation to Turkey: Fact Finding and Trial Monitoring Mission, 6 – 9 November 2023

Türkiye

From November 6 to 9, 2023, representatives from Lawyers for Lawyers, as part of an international delegation, undertook a fact-finding and trial monitoring mission in Turkey. The delegation, comprising 27 bar associations, human rights organizations, and legal groups from eight

Lees verder