An international coalition of lawyers, bar associations and human rights groups has in a joint statement condemned the Turkish government’s escalating campaign against the İstanbul Bar Association and the broader legal profession, calling it a serious threat to judicial independence and the rule of law.
The condemnation follows a decision by an İstanbul court last month that ousted the elected leadership of the İstanbul Bar Association due to their call for an investigation into the December death of two Kurdish journalists in an alleged Turkish drone strike in Syria.
The court ordered the dismissal of the bar’s president and executive board and mandated new elections, a move the coalition said undermines the autonomy of legal institutions in Turkey.
In addition to the civil proceedings, İstanbul Bar President İbrahim Kaboğlu and 10 board members face criminal charges, including “spreading terrorist propaganda” and “publicly disseminating misleading information.” Prosecutors are seeking up to 12 years in prison and bans from engaging in politics. The charges stem from their December statement demanding an independent investigation into the death of journalists Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin in Syria.
The two were killed in a drone strike near Tishrin Dam, east of Aleppo, on December 19 while covering clashes between Turkish-backed forces and US-supported Kurdish fighters, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The group reported that a Turkish drone was responsible for the attack.
Turkish authorities, however, claim that Daştan and Bilgin were not journalists. The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said both men were “members of a terrorist organization” engaged in armed conflict with security forces and were under investigation for the allegation at the time of their death. The prosecution claims the İstanbul Bar Association’s statement misrepresented the facts and sought to undermine national security.
The coalition said the case shows how legal professionals in Turkey are being punished for advocating human rights and upholding the principles of justice.
Signatories to the statement include Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute, the Law Society of England and Wales, the Berlin Bar Association and many other legal and rights organizations from across Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas.
Further intensifying concerns, İstanbul Bar Association board member Fırat Epözdemir was detained on January 23 upon his return from an advocacy visit to the Council of Europe. He has since been charged with “membership in a terrorist organization” and “disseminating terrorist propaganda,” according to an indictment dated April 8.
The crackdown has expanded in the wake of the March 19 detention and subsequent arrest of İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, which triggered nationwide protests. Lawyers attempting to represent detained protesters have themselves faced arrest and harassment. Among them was Özkan Yücel, former chair of the İzmir Bar Association, who was detained in a pre-dawn operation, and lawyer Mehmet Pehlivan, who represents İmamoğlu and was briefly detained.
Attorneys have reported widespread obstruction of their work, including denial of access to clients and courtrooms, violation of confidentiality rights and instances where they were not informed about hearings or even the location of detainees. International legal groups warn such practices amount to de facto enforced disappearances and violate both Turkish and international legal standards.
“These actions are a direct assault on the right to legal defense and access to justice,” the coalition said in a joint statement, calling them part of a broader effort to criminalize legal support for dissent.
The coalition urged the international community, including the United Nations, the Council of Europe and EU institutions, to pressure Turkish authorities to drop all charges against the İstanbul Bar Association executives, release detained lawyers and guarantee the independence of legal institutions.