Situation in Turkey
The extraordinary situation of violation of the independence of the judiciary in Turkey has induced all four European Associations of Judges to join together in their activities:
• The Association of European Administrative Judges (AEAJ),
• The European Association of Judges (EAJ),
• Judges for Judges and
• “Magistrats Européens pour la Démocratie et les Libertés” (MEDEL)
And form a Platform: Platform for an Independent Judiciary in Turkey.
Since its creation, the Platform has been working together to promote the independence of the Judiciary in Turkey and the right to freedom and a fair trial to all the Judges and Prosecutors detained.
Here we gather the main documents issued by the Platform:
Platform Letter Council Europe - 1-8-2016-4SG1.89 MB
Platform Letter Council Europe - 1-8-2016-4PACE1.9 MB
Situation of Turkish Judiciary - Platform Report417.14 KB
Turkey Platform Conclusions163.96 KB
Statement on the eve of the EU-Turkey leaders’ meeting in Varna114.84 KB
70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and its observation in Turkey160.88 KB
Criminal conviction of Mr Murat Arslan117.89 KB
Platform Letter Secretary-General Council Europe - 15-07-2020
Statement of the Platform for in Independent Judiciary in Turkey (31th August 2020) (.pdf)157.11 KB
Links to the other member association webpages of the Platform:
The Association of European Administrative Judges (AEAJ)
The European Association of Judges (EAJ), Regional Group of the International Association of Judges (IAJ)
MEDEL welcomes the statement of ENCJ on the situation of the Judiciary in Turkey and reaffirms it's full commitment to defend the Rule of Law in Turkey and its solidarity with all the Turkish judges, prosecutors and all other citizens who have been unlawfully persecuted.
On 8 December 2016 the ENCJ General Assembly suspended the observer status of the High Council for Judges and Prosecutors of Turkey as it no longer complied with the ENCJ Statutes and was no longer an institution which is independent of the executive and legislature ensuring the final responsibility for the support of the judiciary in the independent delivery of justice.
Four years later, unfortunately, the situation has not improved and has in fact deteriorated considerably. The Council for Judges and Prosecutors is a Council in name only, as none of its actions or decisions demonstrate any concern for the independence of the judiciary. Without a Council to protect and guarantee the independent delivery of justice in Turkey, there is little hope for the Rule of Law in Turkey in general and for access to independent, fair and impartial courts for all who come before the courts including Turkish citizens.
The European Commission has replied to the letter of the Platform for an Independent Judiciary in Turkey (of which MEDEL is a member) of 31 August 2020. You can read it below:
Thank you for your letter dated 31 August 2020 and sent to Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, Vice President Vera Jourova, Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi and HR/VP Josep Borrell Fontelles.
I have been asked to reply. I would like to inform you that, in the context of the EU enlargement policy, the European Commission monitors closely developments and reports on the progress achieved by Turkey in a number of policy areas.
MEDEL has co-signed a joint statement, published today, on the mass arrest of lawyers in Turkey. You can read it below:
Through the new “alternative bar associations” legislation and President Erdogan’s own words “Those who act as the lawyers of terrorists may not act like terrorists themselves. If they do so, there must be a price to pay”, which he said in the presence of judges and prosecutors in the new judicial year opening ceremony, the Turkish government had already signaled that a new phase in the persecution of lawyers was about to start. Only a few days after President Erdogan’s speech, today (11 September 2020), the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor has ordered the arrest of 48 lawyers, 7 trainee lawyers, 4 purged judges and a law graduate, for being “members of a terrorist organisation”
MEDEL issued a statement on the death of the Turkish Lawyer Ebru Timtik. You can find it below:
The death of Ebru Timtik, after 238 days of hunger strike, adds one more life to the many that have already been quashed since the upheaval of democracy in Turkey, and confirms that all members of the Turkish legal community (judges, lawyers, academics) who keep working to defend the rule of law remain “enemies” to fight without mercy.
Ebru Timtik was sentenced to more than 13 years of prison for alleged membership in a terrorist organization, simply on the basis of her professional activity. She never stopped to fight against this injustice, claiming her right to have a fair trial, a fundamental guarantee that is now denied to Turkish citizens.
TURKEY – FOUR YEARS OF DISMANTLEMENT OF RULE OF LAW
Four years ago, on July 15th 2016, a failed coup d’état in Turkey set in motion an unprecedented and orchestrated campaign to destroy the Rule of Law and the independence of the Judiciary.
You can find here the english translation of an article about the verdict against Murat Arslan, written by Ingrid Heilein, the German colleague who has been observing as MEDEL representative the trial of Murat Arslan.
The article was originally published in December 2019 in the German magazine "Betrifft Justiz". Read it below.
The Italian television RAI made a special report about Murat Arslan, with the participation of Gualtiero Michelini, former President of MEDEL, from Magistratura Democratica.
The Platform for an Independent Judiciary in Turkey has published today a letter with an appeal to the respect of basic human rights in what regards the detention of Judges and Prosecutors in Turkey, and focusing on the dramatic case of judge Sultani Temel, who has been arrested (followed by pre-trial detention) since 16 January 2017 (with exception for the period of 5 October 2017 to 6 June 2018), together with her five-year-old daughter.
As a way of reaffirming our solidarity, our Polish member association, Iustitia, has made a video with images of detentions in Turkish courts after the coup in Turkey and with judges and prosecutors from all over Europe, reading some of the letters.
Marking the date of Giovanni Falcone’s assassination by the Mafia in 1992, MEDEL pronounced the 23rd of May as the alert day for the independence of justice in Europe. On this date, we are invited to reflect on the need for an independent and effective justice all over Europe and its importance for the safeguard of European citizens’ fundamental rights and freedoms.
Very dark signs have arisen all over Europe in recent years, inside and outside the European Union. However, in no place as in Turkey did we witness such an orchestrated and premeditated campaign to completely destroy the independence of the Judiciary and the Rule of Law. Since the attempted Coup d’État of July 15th, 2016, all Judges, Prosecutors and Lawyers who had constantly struggled for an independent justice have been persecuted, arrested, dismissed and have seen their property seized without any previous due process and with absolutely no guarantees of defense.
Situation in Turkey