Bar Associatons: Turkey Experiencing Most Severe Judicial Crisis in History

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Bar associations from Aegean, Mediterranean and Marmara regions have held the Extended Meeting of Bar Association Chairpersons.

The final declaration that has been published after the meeting says that "The Republic of Turkey is experiencing the most severe crisis of judiciary in its history."

The Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) has become "politicized," the declaration stressed.

The declaration has been signed by the bar associations of Adana, Ankara, Antalya, Aydın, Balıkesir, Bilecik, Burdur, Bursa, Çanakkale, Denizli, Diyarbakır, Edirne, Antep, Hatay, İstanbul, İzmir, Kırklareli, Kocaeli, Manisa, Mersin, Muğla, Urfa, Tekirdağ, Van and Yalova.

Here is the full text of the declaration:

1- Recently, the lawlessness experienced in cases of social importance, which are followed by the public carefully, and practices that would mean direct interference of the executive with the judiciary have reached an unacceptable extent. The HSK has been completely politicized with its current structure and has become an instrument of pressure on independent judges by accepting the executive's statements, which serve as orders, as a duty. Our bar associations defend the state of law against this situation to the fullest extent and fundamentally reject any approach that reduces lawyers to witnesses of unlawfulness.

2- The Republic of Turkey is experiencing the most severe crisis of the judiciary in its history. Courts are disbanded after their decisions, investigations are opened against judges who give verdicts before the ink of their signatures dries, and the principle of judicial independence is violated every day with a new example. Even not implementing decisions of the High Court and the ECtHR has become ordinary today. Citizens from segments of society continue their lives in an environment where legal security is eliminated. We, the chairpersons of the bar associations who have signatures below, once again declare that we will be against any kind of attempts to make Turkey cease to be a modern country where the universal law, with all of its principles and procedures, is applied.

3- Bar associations have taken the identity as the only institution that can give a voice to the citizens in the quest for freedom. We will continue to be a guarantee of citizens living in a democratic, secular and social state of law. In this context, we promise to work tirelessly for all individuals, institutions and organizations to make them fulfill their constitutional responsibilities. Bar associations, acting as the representative of the people's quest for justice, will continue to do all kinds of constructive work in all areas where they are assigned in accordance with the Code of Lawyers.

4- Turkey, with the crisis of democracy it has been experiencing in the last years, has become one of the largest lawyers' prisons in the world. Our colleagues are tried in an environment where courts are influenced, they are convicted in courts where even procedural law is not applied properly, and lawyers can be given very serious sentences because of the actions they perform for the sake of professional activities. The reality of Turkey that is being experienced today reflects a country where our colleagues go on hunger strikes for their demands regarding a fair trial. Without going into the principles of the files, we invite the courts to fully implement all the rules that are required by universal law in trials of lawyers, to resist any kind of political influence. This period experienced by the lawyers in prison has to be resolved within democratic principles, without harming the health of our colleagues.

5- It has been decided to partner with lawyers for both their economic benefits and practices required to facilitate their daily work life. In this context, it was decided to expand the efforts to send a protest to the bars that were put into practice by some of our bar associations.

6- While the economic difficulties experienced by trainee solicitors are evident, the opinion of the Ministry of Justice that the trainee solicitors cannot receive a salary is a serious problem for our young colleagues. We do not accept the Ministry of Justice, which sees no harm in paying salaries to trainee judges and prosecutors, opposing payment of salaries to trainee solicitors. The discriminatory practice in question must be terminated immediately.

7- Lawyers are subjected to differing and often arbitrary practices, both in court offices and in confinement institutions such as prisons and removal centers. Some new practices, such as the pilot enforcement scheme, continue without considering the problems experienced by lawyers, and the aggrievement of colleagues continues increasing day by day. In order to end these faulty and arbitrary practices, official agencies must contact the bar associations and make their legislation uniform. As Bar Association Chairpersons who have signatures below, we promise to act together against any arbitrary practice that lawyers experience in their professional life and that is beginning to become permanent. (TP/VK)