Lawyers Prevented from Visiting Refugees in Border Area

Photo: Evrensel

Click to read the article in Turkish

Dozens of attorneys, including four bar association chairs, have visited the northwestern Edirne province to make observations on the situation of refugees who went to the border in the hope of crossing into Europe.

Only the chairs of İstanbul, Antalya, Tekirdağ and Kırklareli bar associations were able to go to Pazarkule Border Crossing as the governor's office did not allow attorneys in the area, daily Evrensel reported.

Thousands of refugees have gone to the border province after Turkey announced on February 28 that it will no longer try to prevent migration to Europe despite a 2016 agreement with the EU. 

The number of refugees in the border villages reportedly decreased in the past few days as many have crossed into Greece or returned after losing hope. Still, many refugees are staying in makeshift tents, without toilets and cleaning supplements.

The lawyers made statements near the road to the border crossing. İstanbul Bar Association Chair Mehmet Durakoğlu said they came to Edirne to observe human rights violations and determine what will be done against that.

He noted that attorneys are obliged to protect human rights and report human rights violations, citing Articles 76 and 95 of the Attorneys' Act.

'Turkey cannot solve this on its own'

"We have taken action to detect human rights violations caused by the Greek law enforcement agencies and to help people who were burned with hot water, who have been killed with bullets," said Durakoğlu, adding that they have been working to apply to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in the name of the refugees.

Stressing that there are severe human rights violations against refugees, he said Turkey cannot solve this problem on its own and the world should work together.

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"Unfortunately, all this is a result of the war and exploitation policies that have been going on for many years, and all states that are partners in this war and exploitation are responsible for this," said Polat Balkan, the chair of Antalya Bar Association.

Turkey hosts millions of refugees who fled from the war in Syria and the conflict in Afghanistan.

'Syrians are few there'

"People are piled up here, but we have seen that there are few Syrians at the gates, which have been opened because of the debate on Syrians," said Sedat Tenekeci, the Tekirdağ Bar Association Chair.

"In this sense, Europe's migrant policies are wrong as our country's migrant policies, taking advantage of people's hopes and making their living conditions worse, is not moral, humanitarian and lawful. We want this tragedy to end immediately," he remarked.

"We, as the lawyers, are to remind about human rights one by one. Refugees are not alone. As lawyers, we will always be with them and defend their rights to the full extent," Kırklareli Bar Association Chair Turgay Hınız said.

Governor's ban

Attorney Yıldız İmrek said the deputy governor told them that they would not be allowed in the border area because of the coronavirus outbreak and use of tear gas and firearms by the police force of Greece.

She noted that people were allowed in the area before in the same conditions.

Metin Feyzioğlu, the chair of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, also visited the border and the governor might have prevented them because of that, İmrek suggested. (EKN/VK)