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CALL ON CHINA TO ENSURE THE RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL

A Joint Statement by Legal Professional Groups & Human Rights NGOs on the forthcoming trials of the cases of the 709 Crackdown  

 

To:

   All Press and Media (for immediate release)

 

From:   China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group (CHRLCG)

Taiwan Support China Human Rights Lawyers Network (TCLN)

 

Subject:   A Joint Statement To the Chinese Government Calling on Fair Trial

 

Date: 23/03/2017

 

Enquiries/ Interview:  Kit Chan, Executive Director, CHRLCG (+852 2388 1377) Chou Ching-Chang, General Secretary, TCLN (+886 0912 561 284)

(23 March 2017 – Hong Kong/ Taiwan) Since 9 July 2015, the Chinese government has questioned, summoned and/or detained over 300 human rights lawyers, law firm staff and human rights defenders in a manoeuvre now commonly known as the “709 Crackdown”. Some of these individuals were subsequently indicted for their “crimes”. In early August 2016, four individuals – human rights lawyer Zhou Shifeng and defenders Hu Shigen, Gou Hongguo and Zhai Yanmin – were convicted and sentenced in a deeply flawed trial process that breached both domestic and international laws. [1]

Lawyers Li Heping, Xie Yang and Wang Quanzhang as well as legal activist Wu Gan have been indicted following the Crackdown. It has remained a concern that no trial arrangements have thus far been made for the cases. To caution against repeating the rights violations that took place in the August 2016 hearings, we, the undersigned, solemnly call on the Chinese government to abide by its laws and Constitution as well as international human rights standards by ensuring that respective judicial processes, when take place, will be conducted in full compliance with the basic principles of due process, including the right to a fair trial. Specifically, we are concerned about violations related to independent and impartial courts; the presumption of innocence; the right to counsel; and an open trial. We also express our grave and continued concern about the status of lawyer Jiang Tianyong, who has been held in secret detention since 21 November 2016. We also express our grave and continued concern about the status of lawyer Jiang Tianyong, who has been held in secret detention since 21 November 2016.[2]

Case Background

Lawyers Li Heping and Wang Quanzhang were taken by police on 10 July 2015 from different locations in Beijing; they were charged with “subverting state power” on 5 December 2016 and 14 February 2017, respectively. However, their families have thus far not been provided with any formal documents on their indictment. For the past 20 months, lawyers Li and Wang have been held incommunicado. However, their family members have been pressured by the police to make videos to persuade the lawyers to plead guilty.

The Chinese authorities’ decision not to respond to credible allegations regarding the torture suffered by the two lawyers, which came to light in January 2017, is both deeply regrettable and deeply irresponsible.

Lawyer Xie Yang was captured in Huaihua, Hunan, on 11 July 2015, and was indicted on 16 December 2016 for the alleged crimes of “inciting subversion of state power” and “disruption of court order”. Xie was not allowed to meet the defence counsels appointed by his family until the end of November 2016. As relayed by his defence counsels after meeting him, Xie suffered long-term sleep and food deprivation during his detention. He was also reported to have been physically assaulted and suffered inhuman treatment. [3] Xie’s lawyers have been barred from meeting him since testimonies of his alleged torture was publicized in January 2017. Wu Gan, activist and staff member of the Fengrui Law Firm, is also awaiting trial for allegedly “subverting state power”. Wu has also detailed, through conversations with his lawyers, the torture experienced during his detention.

Our Calls

Due process, including the right to a fair trial, is the bedrock of the rule of law. The right to fair trial is an essential component of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) signed by China in 1998. It is stipulated not only in the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China (the PRC Constitution), but also in the country’s Criminal Procedure Law (CPL). As a right stipulated by both domestic and international laws, the protection of the right to fair trial without undue delay is a legal obligation that the Chinese government must uphold.

We remind the government that any further trespass of the rule of law and the basic human rights of individuals will result in perpetuating the country’s reputation for, and image of, injustice.

In this light, we urge the Chinese government and the People’s Court in charge of the cases (the Court) in particular, to ensure that the following minimum requirements are met in the forthcoming trials aforesaid:

  1. Independent and Impartial Court [4]

While the UDHR stresses “an independent and impartial tribunal”, the PRC Constitution has gone further to stipulate that “(t)he people’s courts exercise judicial power independently, in accordance with the provisions of law, and not subject to interference by any administrative organ, public organization or individual.” The necessity for courts to maintain independence and impartiality is highlighted also in the ICCPR and in the domestic CPL.

We urge the Chinese government not to intervene or interfere with the Court in its handling of the cases. We also call on the Court and the presiding judges to adhere to all principles of due process, including fair trial and all other rights and principles set forth in the UDHR, the ICCPR, the PRC Constitution, the CPL, and including the rights identified herein.

  1. Presumption of Innocence [5]

Presumption of innocence is the starting point of equality before the law. Accordingly, defendants to be tried should not be treated in a manner that presumes guilt until proven otherwise.

We hence condemn the authorities’ efforts to enforce self-incrimination via state media and to attempt to coerce family members to persuade the accused lawyers to plead guilty. We strongly condemn the use of torture and inhuman treatments to extract confession.

We urge the Court to investigate the complaints of torture and the unlawful practices used to extract confessions and self-incrimination so as to ensure that any confessions are properly and legally admissible. We similarly urge authorities to undertake prompt, independent and effective investigations into such allegations so that all perpetrators are held legally accountable. We call on the Court to act in accordance with the law, and to exclude all illegal evidence, including that obtained via means of the above. [6]

  1. Right to Counsel [7]

The right to counsel is a constitutionally protected right in China. We, however, remain greatly disturbed by the four 709 Crackdown trials held in early August 2016, in which none of the accused was defended by counsel of their or their family’s free choosing.

We are also gravely concerned that lawyers Li Heping and Wang Quanzhang have thus far not been able to meet the lawyers appointed by their families. While the CPL permits derogation of rights to meet with counsel during investigation of state security-related crimes, we are of the view that the restriction should no longer apply at a stage when investigation is completed and both lawyers are now indicted and awaiting trials.

We hence urge the Chinese authorities to immediately arrange for lawyers Li and Wang to meet the counsels appointed by their families. In case where the detained lawyers intend to dismiss their counsels, as the police have once claimed, we maintain that article 8 of the Provisions of the Supreme People’s Court, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security and Other Departments on Legally Protecting Lawyers’ Practicing Rights (2015) should be observed to allow the defence counsels to meet their clients and affirm their intention in person.

Along these lines, we call on the Chinese authorities to ensure that the accused individuals will be provided with adequate opportunities, time and facilities to consult their counsels of choosing in full confidentiality. [8]

We also call on the Court to ensure that the prosecutors and defence counsels will be treated equally and fairly during the trials and that the defendants will have all the guarantees necessary for their respective defence.

  1. Open Trial [9]

The PRC Constitution stipulates that court hearings should be open. Accordingly, all trials, unless implicating state secrets, protection of minors or matters of privacy, should be open to the public.

We take note of the four trials held in August 2016. We deem it regrettable that dates and information about the trials was released either on the eve of the trials or on the day they were to take place. It also remains a deep concern of ours that the courtrooms for those trials were attended by authority-invited media and that none of the family members or defence counsels appointed by them was allowed to attend the hearings.

Referring to the CPL and the PRC Court Rules of the People’s Courts (the Court Rules), [10] we urge the Court to abide by its judicial obligations, and ensure that the date, time and venue of the trials be duly announced in accordance with the law; that next-of-kin to the defendants shall be given priority to attend the court hearings; and that all media and members of the public have equal access to the hearings.

We also strongly caution against any attempt to hold a secret trial. The abusive use of the broad and imprecise definition of state secrecy against rights defenders in China has long and often been criticized both in and out of the country.

We call on the Court to take note of the Johannesburg Principles, and ensure (1), that no restriction to the right to open trial should be allowed unless and until evidence is legally sufficient to prove actual harm to a legitimate national security interest; and (2), that restriction of access to the trials should only be made “to the extent strictly necessary for the purposes of considering evidence that has been classified as a secret”. [11]

We, the undersigned, will continue to monitor the status of the human rights lawyers and defenders implicated in the 709 Crackdown, including the protection of their basic human rights.

Initiators

China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group (CHRLCG)

Taiwan Support China Human Rights Lawyers Network (TCLN)

 

Co-signatories

  • Legal Professionals

Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales

Committee to Support Chinese Lawyers (CSCL)

Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE)

European Democratic Lawyers (AED)

International Association of People’s Lawyers (IAPL)

International Commission of Jurists (ICJ)

Lawyers for Lawyers (L4L)

L’Institut des droits de l’homme des avocats européens (IDHAE)

L’Observatoire international des avocats en danger (OIAD)

Union Internationale des Avocats (UIA)

Boehringer, Gill, Honorary Associate of School of Law, Macquarie University, Australia

Italianer, Joost, Dutch lawyer, part-time judge, member of the Dutch Disciplinary Court of Appeals for lawyers

MNA Rehan & Partners, Member of Islamabad Bar Association and Islamabad High Court Bar Association

Pils, Eva, Reader in Transnational Law Dickson Poon School of Law, King’s College London

Russell, Stuart, Co-director of International Association of People’s Lawyers Monitoring Committee

  • Human Rights Organisations

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW)

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation (CIVICUS)

Human Rights in China (HRIC)

Human Rights Now, Japan (HRN)

Human Rights Watch (HRW)

International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)

Justice and Peace Commission of the Hong Kong Catholic Diocese

Taiwan Association for China Human Rights (TACHR)

Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR)

Taiwan, Judicial Reform Foundation (JRF)

Tibet Justice Center

 

 

 

[1] See details in a report prepared by the China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group on 7 August 2016   https://goo.gl/WTvO5l

[2] For more details http://www.chrlawyers.hk/sites/default/files/Day%20of%20the%20Endangered%20lawyer%20English.pdf

http://www.chrlawyers.hk/en/%E6%96%87%E7%AB%A0%E9%A1%9E%E5%9E%8B/%E8%81%B2%E6%98%8E

[3] Transcription of interviews with lawyer Xie Yang by his counsel Chen Jiangang (1-4)   https://chinachange.org/2017/01/19/transcript-of-interviews-with-lawyer-xie-yang-1/

[4] UDHR (art. 10), ICCPR (art. 14.1), the PRC Constitution (art.126) and CPL (arts. 3 and 5)

[5] UDHR (art. 11), ICCPR (art. 14.2), CPL (art. 12)

[6] CPL (arts. 18, 50 and 54)

[7] The PRC Constitution (art. 125), CPL (art. 11), ICCPR (art. 14.3d), the Basic Principles (art. 1, 19, 27)

[8] UDHR (art. 11), ICCPR (art. 14.3b) and the Basic Principles (art. 8)

[9] The PRC Constitution (art. 125), UDHR (art. 10), ICCPR (art. 14.1)

[10] CPL (art. 182), the Court Rules (art. 9)

[11] Joshua D. Rosenzweig, “Public Access and the Right to a Fair Trial in China”, the Dui Hua Foundation, http://duihua.org/wp/?page_id=2542 , visited on 3 March 2017

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The judicial system under the state of emergency in Turkey

The Judicial System under the State of Emergency in Turkey is an international conference, which will be held on the 14th and 15th of January 2017 in Ankara, at the Ankara Plaza Hotel, Kavaklidere Bestekar Sk. No: 5 06680 Çankaya.

The conference is organized by the:

• European Association of Lawyers for Democracy and World Human Rights, www.eldh.eu
• European Democratic Lawyers, https://www.aeud.org/
• International Association of Democratic Lawyers, http://www.iadllaw.org/newsite/
• The Day of the Endangered Lawyers Foundation, http://dayoftheendangeredlawyer.eu
• Together with the 19 Bar Associtions of the following Turkish cities: Ankara, Adana, Adiyaman, Agn, Antalya, Batman, Bingöl, Bitlis, Diyarbakir, Hakkari, Igdir, Kars-Ardahan, Mardin, Mus, Siirt, Sanliurfa, Sirnak, Tunceli, Van (some other Bar Associations in Turkey will suport the conference.)
• and judges’ Associations: Democratic Judges, The Syndicat of Judges
• The platform of Lawyers against State of Emergency: The platform of 11 different lawyer group

 

and has the following program

14.01.2017 – SATURDAY

Opening: Bill Bowring, The President of ELDH – Pascale Taelman – The President of EDL-AED

09.30-10.45 The rights, duties and the repression faced by Bar Associations and their members under State of Emergency

Moderator: Mengücek Gazi Çıtırık

Speakers: Ahmet Özmen – The president of Diyarbakır Bar Association, Hakan Canduran – The president of Ankara Bar Association, Polat Balkan– The president of Antalya Bar Association, Veli Küçük – The president of Adana Bar Association, Gürkan Altun – The president of Bursa Bar Association, Robert Sabata – Barcelona Bar Association

11.15 – 13.00 Under the State of Emergency: The guarantee for the independence and impartiality  of Judges

Moderator: İlhan Cihaner / Murat Aydın

Speakers: Orhan Gazi Ertekin, Leyla Tarhan Köksal, Mustafa Karadağ, Ingrid Heinlein

LUNCH (13.00 – 14.00)

14.00 – 15.45 State of Emergency and the Media

Moderator: Gökçer Tahincioğlu

Speakers: Zeynep Yüncüler, Erdem Gül, Cem Gurbetoğlu, Kenan Kırkaya

16.00 – 17.45 Being of a lawyer under the State of Emergency

Moderator: Ayşe Acinikli

Speakers: Selçuk Kozağaçlı – ÇHD, Özgür Erol – ÖHD, Thomas Schmidt – ELDH, Pascale Taelman – AED, Hans Gaasbeek – Day of the Endangered Lawyer Foundation, Jan Fermon – IADL, Barbara Spinelli – ELDH/GD

15.01.2017 -SUNDAY

09.30 – 10.45: The legislative prerogative under the state of emergency and parliamentary immunity

Moderator: Ali Haydar Hakverdi

Speakers: Meral Danış Beştaş, Şenal Sarıhan, Filiz Kerestecioğlu, İlhan Cihaner, Mithat Sancar

11.00 – 13.00: Practices of Anti-Terror, State of Emergency and State of Siege in Turkey and in the World.

Speakers: Berke Özenç, Şebnem Korur Fincancı, Cihan Aydın, Clemens Lahner – ELDH, Florian Borg – AED

 

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Basic Report about the oppression of lawyers in China

Approximately 300,000 lawyers are practising in China. Lawyers in China are closely monitored by the State for their work. Apart from direct intervention from the judicial bureaus and the lawyers association, lawyers are kept under control also by a controversial Annual Inspection system. In order to continue their practice, lawyers have to submit their lawyer’s licence to the judicial bureau, the executive branch of the judiciary, for inspection on an annual basis. They will be scrutinised for the cases they handled, especially the so-called “politically sensitive” ones, which are often with human rights and/or rule of law implications. A lawyer who fails the inspection will not be given a stamp on his or her licence. The stamp, which is an administrative measure and without legal basis, will determine if a lawyer can continue his or her practice in the following year. The authorities may also suspend the lawyer’s practice by holding the licence for a prolonged period of time, hence stopping the lawyer from practising.

 

In their daily practice, lawyers also encounter harassment and intimidation by the public security officers, a special branch of the police, and by the courts. They could be forbidden to meet their clients and/or to have access to files, often and again for the so-called politically sensitive cases. Situations of this kind may result in lawyers being criminally detained or subjected to violence if they insist that their procedural rights or due process be observed. Other measures against the rights of lawyers include forcing them and their family to constantly move home and/or forbidding them from travelling outside the country.

International treaties

China has ratified the following international human rights treaties (date of ratification):

  • Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1980); International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1981);
  • Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1988);
  • Convention on the Rights of the Child (1992);
  • International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (2001);
  • Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2008)

 

China has signed but not ratified the following treaty:

  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (signed in 1998)

 

China has also supported the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers adopted by the 8th United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders in Havana, Cuba, in 1990, which inter alia, obliges the State to protect lawyers.

In China, the defects in the Criminal Law (CL) and the Criminal Procedure Law (CPL) have also put the rights of lawyers at risk. While the CL provides the authorities with arbitrary powers to bring criminal charges against lawyers, articles 306 and 309, for instance, the CPL can subject detained lawyers to prolonged pre-trial detention with deprivation of rights under various pretexts, articles 37 and 73, for instance. As past experiences reveal, lawyers held under this kind of situation could be subjected to torture or inhuman treatment.

Lawyer Pu Zhiqiang was sentenced on December 22, 2015 after being detained for over 19 months. He was found guilty of “inciting ethnic hatred” as well as “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”. Another lawyer recently imprisoned is Tang Jingling. He was sentenced to five years imprisonment in January 2016, 20 months after his first detention in May 2014, for “inciting subversion of state power”. Most recently, the director of the Fengrui Law Firm, which is at the centre of the 709 crackdown, was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for allegedly “subverting state power”.

 

709 Crackdown of Human Rights Lawyers and Defenders

On July 9, 2015, human rights lawyer Wang Yu and her family disappeared in the middle of the night. Thereafter, a large numbers of human rights lawyers and defenders were persecuted in a concerted manner on an unprecedented scale. The crackdown resulted in an outcry and attention from the international community including legal professionals.

So far over 300 lawyers and defenders have been targeted. They were either summoned or temporarily detained, and subsequently 24 were formally arrested. Many of these 24 were arrested after being held for six months incommunicado.

From August 2 to 5, 2016, four of the lawyers were sentenced during controversial trials. The four cases involved human rights lawyer Zhou Shifeng (director of the Beijing Fengrui Law Firm) as well as human rights defenders Hu Shigen, Zhai Yanmin and Gou Hongguo. All were charged with the crime of “subverting state power”.

According to Amnesty International 245 lawyers and activists have been targeted since July 9, 2015, when the crackdown started.

Many different lawyers organisations and human rights organisations have expressed their outrage about the mass arrests. For example, the Lawyers for Lawyers foundation, the International Association of People’s Lawyers monitoring committee on attacks on lawyers, Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada and the Hong Kong-based China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group. Amongst other issues, they have focused on the forced disappearances and the detention of lawyers as criminal suspects and intimidation. Many lawyers organisations, Bar associations and human rights organisations have signed joint letters to express their worries about the detention and harassment of lawyers.

The CCBE, the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe, has recently sent a protest letter to the Chinese government urging the Chinese government to take effective steps to drop all charges against the lawyers and to order the immediate release of the detained lawyers; it is believed that the charges against these lawyers are solely motivated by their legitimate and peaceful defence of human rights.

It is sad and shocking that the charges against the lawyers and also their legal assistants fall under security-related crimes. Most of the arrested lawyers are accused of subversion of state power or inciting subversion of state power. With the effect that their rights to due process are suspended and that they suffer extended detention periods during which they are often deprived of access to their lawyers.

Many of these arrested lawyers and there assistants have been detained incommunicado. It is outrageous that even after many months in jail they were still not able to meet their defence counsel. Incommunicado detention often makes torture and inhuman treatment possible.

Even the families of arrested lawyers were requested to persuade these lawyers to “confess their mistakes” on a film and to incriminate themselves, which is in our opinion an attack on the integrity of evidence collection during police investigations.

We refer to the report of Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada http://www.lrwc.org and to the very detailed information in this report, as well as the open letter to the President of the People’s Republic of China of July 9, 2016, about the due process for lawyers in detention. Finally, we refer to the report on the 709 crackdown.

 

English: http://www.chrlawyers.hk/en/content/report-709-crackdown

 

Report 1/8/2016 by:

Imane Aynan

Hans Gaasbeek

International coordinators of the Day of the Endangered Lawyer

http://www.dayoftheendangeredlawyer.eu

 

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7th Day Of the Endangered Lawyer with the focus on the persecuted and harassed Chinese lawyers on the 24th of January 2017 in around 30 cities

Every January 24th lawyers around the world support endangered lawyers in other countries by holding protests in front of the Embassies and Consulates of a designated country, holding meetings, press conferences and other activities.

This time the designated country will be China, which unleashed a massive crackdown against lawyers in July 2015. Before these mass arrests, many lawyers were already harassed or arrested because of taking up cases with Human Rights implications.

On this Day Of The Endangered Lawyer in as many cities is possible a centralized petition will be handed over at the same time to Ambassadors, Consuls and other official legal institutions. In this petition we ask the attention of the Chinese government for the problematic situation of the endangered Chinese lawyers. We will also put pressure on the Chinese Government to take care that the situation of the lawyers will be ameliorated as soon as possible. And that the persecution and harassment of these lawyers will be stopped.

The aim of the Day is to try to get a dialogue with the Ambassadors or other representatives of the Peoples Republic of China.

In other cities press conferences, colloquia and other manifestations on this issue will take place.

 

 

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The CHD has been banned in Turkey

Here is the Press statement of our German colleagues from the RAV:

 

On the 11th of November 2016, the Turkish Ministry of Interior, in the context of the state of emergency, has banned 370 organizations and associations in Turkey. It has further set, inter alia, a three-month ban on the freedom of the advocacy for lawyers: the ÇHD (Çağdaş Hukukçular Derneği), the lawyers ‘association ÖHD (Özgürlükçü Hukukçular Derneği) and the Mesopotamian lawyers’ association MHD (Mezopotamya Hukukçular Derneği). Their business premises were sealed. In addition, several lawyers were arrested under massive use of force. The government relies on Article 11 of the Exemption Act and justifies the ban with its responsibility for national security.

 

The opposite is the case:

In fact, ÇHD, ÖHD, and MHD are legal associations that have been advocating the enforcement of human and civil rights in Turkey for decades. ÇHD and ÖHD are members of the ‘European Association of Lawyers for Democracy and Human Rights in the World’ (EJDM / ELDH1). The ÇHD is also, as the RAV, a member of the umbrella organization of European democratic lawyers (EDA / AED). In 2014, the ÇHD was awarded the Kant-Weltbürger-Preis by the Freiburger Kant-Stiftung and the VDJ the Hans-Litten-Prize4 for its commitment to human rights and democracy. They support the rights of minorities, the fight against torture and human rights violations in Turkey, not least through successful complaints to the European Court of Human Rights.

 

With these unlawful attacks on ÇHD, ÖHD and MHD, the Turkish government violates the fundamental right of freedom of association and the basic principles of free advocacy, as they were adopted by the United Nations in 1990 as “Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers”. If lawyers cannot act for the interests of their clients for fear of persecution, there can be no question of the existence of a legal state.

Erdoğan is set to destroy what is left of oppositional civil society in Turkey.

 

 

We strongly condemn these unlawful attacks on our colleagues and demand the immediate release of all imprisoned lawyers and the immediate termination of the state of emergency and the ensuing repression.

 

With the imposition of the state of emergency, following the coup attempt on 15 July 2016, the Turkish government has systematically abolished the rule of law and democracy. With the dismissal of thousands of judges, state officials, teachers and academics, the closure of free media and the arrest of thousands of people, including parliamentary deputies, with the pretext of combating terrorism, Erdoğan’s is making it very clear: It is not about securing, but about abolishing democracy.

 

This can be illustrated by some of the changes, obtained by governmental decrees, with regard to the rights of the defence, after the imposition of the state of exception:

– Accused can be held for up to 5 days in incommunicado detention, thus without right to contact a lawyer

– The accused can be held in custody for 30 days without having to be prosecuted

– Visits of the defenders to their detained clients may be prohibited for a period of up to 6 months

– All discussions between imprisoned accused and their defenders are to be filmed and monitored by the prison staff

– All defence documents can be confiscated, even without judicial decision

– Defenders can be searched in detention during visits of their clients, even physically.

– Law firms can be searched without a search warrant and the documents of the client seized

 

There, where the population is intimidated and silenced by mass-dismissals, prosecution, detention, torture and deprivation of rights, there is no basis for any democracy. There, where lawyers are not allowed to do their work, the state of law is something from the past.

 

The Federal Government cannot close its eyes before this development.

Our solidarity is open to all those who advocate democracy, human rights and freedom in Turkey.

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Statement regarding the attack on the lawyer Günay Dag

The member of the Istanbul branch of ÇHD, lawyer Günay Dag, was subjected to torture a few days ago by guards of Maltepe juvenile’s prison acting under the orders of the prison governor while visiting one of his clients. His head was rammed against the wall and on the ground and as a result his fingers and head were injured. Afterwards he was dragged out of the prison on the floor.

It is worth remembering that Lawyer Günay Dag had gone to the prison to investigate the alleged torture of child detainees.

Obviously, even if there is a state of emergency (Decree having force of Law concerning the emergency measures – Decree Decision Number: KHK /667) the individuals’ rights must be inviolable (As amended on May 7, 2004; act 5170: Even under these circumstances the individual’s right to life, the integrity of his/her physical and mental existence shall be inviolable….) and the Article 17 of the Turkish Constitution says:

……No one shall be subjected to torture or mal-treatment; no one shall be subjected to penalties or treatment incompatible with human dignity.

It is evident that if lawyers cannot do their jobs in Turkey, it means that more children and more young people will be arrested because of their speech and thoughts and many people will be faced with torture. So this is not just a fight for the lawyers’ rights but is a fight for democracy and freedom, as defined by the case law of the ECHR. Nowadays we are facing a long-running attempt by the Turkish government to stifle human rights activism.

Our organisations work on the base of The Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers which have been adopted by the 8th congress of the United Nations in Havana (Cuba) between 27 August and 7 September 1990, which principles contain the following:

Whereas adequate protection of the human rights and fundamental freedoms to which all persons are entitled, be they economic, social and cultural, or civil and political, requires that all persons have effective access to legal services provided by an independent legal profession,

Whereas professional associations of lawyers have a vital role to play in upholding professional standards and ethics, protecting their members from persecution and improper restrictions and infringements, providing legal services to all in need of them, and cooperating with governmental and other institutions in furthering the ends of justice and public interest,

The Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, set forth below, which have been formulated to assist Member States in their task of promoting and ensuring the proper role of lawyers, should be respected and taken into account by Governments within the framework of their national legislation and practice and should be brought to the attention of lawyers as well as other persons, such as judges, prosecutors, members of the executive and the legislature, and the public in general. These principles shall also apply, as appropriate, to persons who exercise the functions of lawyers without having the formal status of lawyers.

And establish the following guarantees:

  1. Governments shall ensure that lawyers (a) are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference; (b) are able to travel and to consult with their clients freely both within their own country and abroad; and (c) shall not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or administrative, economic or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognized professional duties, standards and ethics.
  2. Where the security of lawyers is threatened as a result of discharging their functions, they shall be adequately safeguarded by the authorities.

Likewise the Recommendation (Council of Europe) No. R(2000)21 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the freedom of exercise of the profession of lawyer sets the minimums of protection that are not being followed by the Turkish State.

As jurists we cannot accept this harassment of our colleague. Sadly, there is a long tradition of attacking the defence in Turkey. We must prevent the development of intimidation against lawyers and humans rights defenders.

This is why, in this situation the AED-EDL, the ELDH and the Foundation of the Day of the Endangered Lawyer condemn the actions against the civil and political rights of its citizens and lawyers occurring in Turkey by way of the use of state powers. And so:

I.- We call on our colleagues, friends, democrats, the chairman of the Turkish Union of Bar Associations and all chairmen and board members of the Bar Associations throughout Turkey to show solidarity with the lawyer Günay Dag.

II.- We demand that the governor and the prison guards must be investigated concerning these facts and prosecuted if necessary.

III.- We call upon the Turkish government to stop these practices against human rights defenders and lawyers.

IV.- Finally, we invite the Union of Bar Associations of Turkey to break its silence regarding the increasing attacks on lawyers and we invite the Istanbul Bar Association to support its member.

Harlem, Créteil, London, 16th October 2016.

 

schermata-2016-10-21-alle-18-04-45

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Le déficit démocratique aujourd’hui en Turquie:

Des autocrates au pouvoir et de la répression.

Dès le 15 juin dernier plus de 40.000 personnes sont en prison, d’entre les 100.000 détenus à cause d’un Coup d’État qui reste une énigme politique de premier ordre. Actuellement on peut dire que :

Il existe une manipulation de tout mass media et la fermeture de maints journaux, radios, télévisons : donc, pas d’opposition médiatique aux consignes antidémocratiques et tyranniques des pouvoirs publics.

Les attaques aux parlementaires et aux maires de l’HDP et (parti Démocratique des Peuples) sont évidents.

Ainsi que les purges de fonctionnaires (3000 licenciés et 40.000 en attente de l’être).

Il existe des groupes paramilitaires et parapoliciers qui commencent à agir de partout.

Les Modifications urgentes du Procès pénal pour empêcher le libre exercice de la défense (s’il existait déjà avant le coup d’État) sont une réalité.

Les procès pénitentiaires ont été modifiés. La torture est très généralisée en prison et en garde-à-vue.

La mort civile des opposants moyennant la « freeze assets » complet qui leur fait impossible de même s’alimenter. Les passeports sont retirés aux suspects et à leurs familles qui deviennent ainsi des otages politiques.

Du point de vue du Droit de la défense la situation s’aggrave de jour en jour. Le Conseil Supérieur des Juges et Procureurs (HSYK) continue a être choisi/élu par le pouvoir exécutif, ce qui suppose un brisement du principe de la division des pouvoirs de l’État. Ce Conseil terrorise les Juges ou Magistrats qui ne suivent pas ses consignes politiques en prenant tout genre de représailles contre eux, en une attaque directe contre l’indépendance du pouvoir judiciaire. Viendra le tour des défendeurs des DH qui ont toujours subit une attention “spéciale” des pouvoirs politiques en Turquie.

Le Magistrats et les Avocats doivent faire face au péril de confrontation civile en Turquie. Le 29 octobre la ÇHD (Association de Avocats Progressistes en Turquie) tiendra une conférence à Izmir avec des associations de Magistrats pour analyser la situation et chercher des complicités qui apparaissaient difficiles auparavant.

Et finalement, les populations kurdes et les minorités nationales, culturelles ou religieuses souffrent de plus en plus et toujours la répression, le meurtre et l’oubli de l’Europe, enfermée dans son bastion aveugle face aux crimes contre l’humanité qui se produisent chaque jour au sud-est et ailleurs en Turquie.

Aussi face à cette situation l’AED condamne les actuations du Gouvernement turc limitant et contre les Droits Civils et politiques de ses citoyens et condamne de même les crimes contre l’Humanité qui se produisent en Turquie sous le paravent des pouvoirs étatiques.

Barcelona, Bruxelles, Paris, Madrid, Berlin, Rome, Milano, Bilbao, Amsterdam

10 Octobre 2016

AED/EDL (Avocats Européens Démocrates / European Democratic Lawyers)

Membre adhéré en Turquie: ÇHD – Çağdaş Hukukçular Derneği (Association de Avocats Progressistes) / www.chd.org.tr

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European Lawyers demand: release MUNİP ERMIS immediately!

The European Association of Lawyers for Democracy and World Human Rights (ELDH) and the European Democratic Lawyers (AED-EDL) are gravely concerned about the news that the Vice President of CHD – Çağdaş Hukukçular Derneği – (Progressive Lawyers Association), lawyer Münip Ermiş was taken into custody this morning. His house and his office were searched. His is the one of the names in a search warrant,which includes 26 lawyers.

For many years ÇHD is a member organisation of ELDH and AED and we know Mr. Münip Ermiş very well as an admirable lawyer who has defended many victims of human rights violations in Turkey.

This arrest is part of a pattern of terrorist persecutions that the Turkish government is bringing against its citizens- journalists, trade union members, human rights activists, members of parliament, academics and students who are committed to a peaceful solution of the Kurdish question and to freedom of speech.

Since the government started operations under the reason of their fights against the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), it is clear that they are using this as a pretext of oppression of organisations and individuals who have definitely no connection with FETÖ.

ÇHD is an association, which since 1974 has campaigned for the respect and defence of human rights and the defence of oppressed people in Turkey since 1974. ÇHD is an example of the principled and courageous advocacy in Turkey. This is not the first case of government attacks against ÇHD. The trial against 46 other high ranking ÇHD members is pending since 2013. ELDH is utmost concerned that the arrest of lawyer Münip Ermiş is another case against lawyers because they fulfil their professional functions.

ELDH and AED strongly condemn this operation against ÇHD’s Vice president, Münip Ermiş. ELDH and AED demand his immediate release and the end of all unjustified persecution. ELDH and AED demand furthermore that the Turkish government respects the professional work and role of lawyers in particular Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights as well as Art. 16 and 18 of the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers. ELDH and AED offer their solidarity to the Turkish lawyers in their fight human rights and justice under the present Turkish regime.

 

London/Dusseldorf/Barcelona, 8th of September 2016