DYYAD - DAY OF THE ENDANGERED LAWYER Declaration and endorsement of Joint Declaration on the breakdown of the Rule of Law and serious threats against the independence of Judges, Lawyers and Prosecutors in Turkey
January 24, 2019
The Hellenic Action for Human Rights - Pleiades (2009), Lawyers Without Borders (1995) and their Joint Program DYYAD - Human Rights Defenders' Support Network,
A. Urge Governments and Institutions to acknowledge an alarming increase in the victimization of Lawyers who practice in Council of Europe's member States and take urgent action about it, including by transposing ISHR's model law.
B. Urge the Greek Government to proceed to legislative motion, based on DYYAD's proposal, announced from the Athens Bar Association in November 2017, translating and adequately transforming the ISHR's model law, and additionally incorporating provisions of the UN Principles on the Role of Lawyers.
C. Urge the CoE's Committee of Ministers to proceed to the adoption of a Convention on the Legal Profession, taking into account the mounting, unprecedented harassment of Lawyers practicing in the CoE, and especially of those cooperating with or participating in exposing structural deficiencies and mass human rights violations.
D. Urge all the above to condemn the massive victimization of human rights Lawyers, especially of Lawyers practicing in Russia, Azerbaijan and Greece, and take relevant action.
E. Urge Governments, Institutions, Bars, Law Societies, NGOs, and any stakeholder, to condemn the massive victimization of Lawyers, Judges and Prosecutors in Turkey.
Regarding this point, Pleiades, LWB and DYYAD join other Bar Associations, Law Societies and Legal Organisations in a Joint Declaration concerning the breakdown of the Rule of Law and serious threats against the independence of Judges, Lawyers and Prosecutors in Turkey.
We join our voice with those signing the Declaration and urge the Government of Turkey to:
1. Guarantee the independence of the judiciary and the prosecution services, in accordance with the UN Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary and the UN Guidelines on the Role of Prosecutors;
2. Guarantee that all applications against dismissal decisions are considered in a fair and public hearing in a reasonable time by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law as provided for in Article 14.1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and Article 6.1 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), both instruments are legally binding on Turkey;
3. Ensure that lawyers can effectively perform their professional functions in accordance with the guarantees provided for in Article 14 of the ICCPR, Articles 5 and 6 of the ECHR, and the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers;
4. Amend the anti-terrorism legislation, the provisions in the Criminal Code and any other legislation that restricts the independence of the legal profession as recommended by the Council of Europe, the European Court of Human Rights, and the European Union;
5. Refrain from adopting any new laws, decrees, or provisions that permit the interference with the independence of the legal profession;
6. Immediately end the arbitrary and systematic arrest, prosecution and detention of lawyers, judges, prosecutors, and court officials, and drop the charges against those arbitrarily arrested and accused, and release those who have been detained, unless credible evidence of criminal misconduct is presented in proceedings that comply with international fair trial standards; and
7. Immediately end the interference and systematic persecution of Bar associations and Lawyers’ associations as well as the arbitrary arrest and prosecution of their members.
The declaration marks the 9th annual Day of the Endangered Lawyer and, along with BHRC, includes Abogacía Española – Consejo General, Geneva Bar Association–Human Rights Commission, German Bar Association–Human Rights Committee, European Bar Human Rights Institute, Paris Bar Human Rights Institute, International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute, International Observatory for endangered lawyers, Law Society of England and Wales, Lawyers for Lawyers, and Norwegian Bar Association–Human Rights Committee.
The Day of the Endangered Lawyer was founded and is organised by the Foundation for the Day of the Endangered Lawyer based in Harlem, the Netherlands. The 24th of January was chosen to be the annual International Day of the Endangered Lawyer because on this day in 1977 four lawyers and a co-worker were murdered at their office in Madrid, Spain. This was also known as the Massacre of Atocha.
The Day honours lawyers across the world who put themselves at risk in the fight for human rights and the rule of law. It aims to create awareness that the practice of the legal profession in many countries involves significant risks, but also to denounce the situation in a particular country where lawyers are victims of serious violations of their fundamental rights because of the exercise of their profession. Each year, the persecution of lawyers in a particular country is highlighted, and the Foundation coordinates activities outside of the country’s embassies around the world. Previous Days of the Endangered Lawyer have expressed concern for lawyers in Iran (2010), Turkey (2012), Basque Country/Spain (2013), Colombia (2014), the Philippines (2015), Honduras (2016), China (2017) and Egypt (2018).
In line with the focus for the Day of the Endangered Lawyer for 2019, the joint declaration expressed its concern for lawyers in Turkey.
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