【요약문】세계변호사협회 인권연구소(IBAHRI)는 터키 내 변호사 6명의 재판에 대한 심각한 우려를 표명했다. 이들은 모두 아드난 옥타르*와 그의 200여 명의 동료를 변호했던 변호사들이다. 다수의 보고서에 따르면 국내, 지역 및 국제 인권법 위반이 있었다고 한다. IBAHRI는 변호사들에게 정당한 절차를 제공해야 함을 강조했다.* 성폭행, 돈세탁 등 범죄 혐의로 기소된 사이비 종교 지도자로 2022년 튀르키예 재심 재판부는 징역 8,658년형을 선고한바 있음.재판은 2024년 5월 22일부터 25일까지 이스탄불에서 진행되었으며, 이 변호사들은 '범죄 조직 결성을 목적으로 한 단체 회원' 혐의로 기소되었다. 기소된 변호사들은 이스탄불 변호사 협회의 부락 테미즈, 펠린 두르무스, 시넴 몰라하사노글루, 투그바 발, 아예세 토프락과 앙카라 변호사 협회의 아르주 귤이다.터키 당국이 아드난 옥타르와 그의 동료들의 범죄 혐의를 조사하는 과정에서, 변호사들의 직업적 의무(변론활동)가 '범죄 조직 활동'으로 간주되었다. 2018년부터 변호사들은 반복적인 사법적 괴롭힘, 협박 및 임의적인 구금의 대상이 되어 왔다. 언론 보도에 따르면 이들에 대한 형사 고발에는 명확한 법적 근거가 부족하며, 변호사 접견도 거부된 것으로 알려졌다. 이는 변호사들의 이전 고객(아드난 옥타르)에 대한 인권 침해와 일치한다.터키 검찰청은 변호사들이 아드난 옥타르 사건에 연루된 고객들에게 부당한 압력을 가하고, 지시를 전달하며, 범죄 조직의 지속성을 확보하기 위해 금융 수단을 통제했다고 주장했다. 그러나 변호사들은 이 혐의를 강력히 부인했다.IBAHRI 공동 의장인 앤 랜버그는 변호사들이 직업 활동을 수행하는 과정에서 발생한 괴롭힘과 기소는 터키 헌법, 터키 변호사법 및 국제법 규정에 대한 명백한 위반이라고 비난하면서, 터키 법원에 공정한 재판을 촉구했다.터키 변호사법 제58조에 따르면 변호사의 직무와 관련된 범죄에 대한 조사는 범죄가 발생한 관할 지역의 공공 검사에 의해 수행되어야 한다. 그러나 터키 당국은 조사와 체포 과정에서 법무부의 허가를 받지 않았다. 이는 절차적 비정상을 나타낸다.터키 헌법 제36조는 공정한 재판을 받을 권리를 보장하며, 터키 정부는 국제법과 관련된 의무를 준수해야 한다. ICCPR*의 서명국으로서 터키는 공정한 재판과 독립적이고 공정한 재판을 받을 권리를 보장해야 한다. UN 인권 선언 제10조와 ICCPR 제9조도 이와 유사한 권리를 규정하고 있다.*시민적 및 정치적 권리에 관한 국제규약(번역본은 첨부파일 참고)IBAHRI는 2022년 7월 터키 대통령 레제프 타이이프 에르도안에게 변호사들에 대한 불법적이고 임의적인 행위에 대해 비판하는 서한을 보냈다. 그러나 답변은 없었다. 2024년 2월에는 터키 당국이 터키 인권 협회 공동 의장 외즈튀르크 튀르크도안(Ozturk Turkdoan)을 테러 조직 회원으로 체포한 사건을 포함해 변호사와 시민 사회 활동가들을 대상으로 한 구금 및 기소 패턴을 상세히 설명한 보고서를 발표했다.터키는 ECHR*의 서명국으로서 공정한 재판을 받을 권리를 보장해야 하며, 변호사들이 그들의 직업적 책임을 두려움 없이 수행할 수 있도록 해야 한다. IBAHRI는 터키 사법부가 국내 및 국제 인권 법률에 따른 의무를 준수하고, 모든 피고인에게 정당한 절차를 보장할 것을 촉구한다.*European Convention on Human Rights(원문 첨부파일 참고)【원문】Turkiye: IBAHRI expresses serious concern over trial of six defence lawyersThe International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) has expressed serious concern over the trial of six lawyers in Turkiye who were all former defence counsel for Adnan Oktar and more than 200 of his associates. With multiple reports suggesting violations of domestic, regional and international human rights law, the IBAHRI emphasises the importance of affording due process to the lawyers. The trial is taking place in Istanbul, Turkiye between 22?25 May 2024. The six lawyers are Istanbul Bar Association members Burak Temiz, Pelin Durmu, Sinem Mollahasanoglu, Tugba Bal and Aye Toprak, as well as Ankara Bar Association member Arzu Gul. The lawyers are being tried on the charge of ‘membership of an organisation established for the purpose of committing a crime’, under Article 220 of the Turkish Criminal Code. During investigations by Turkiye’s authorities into the alleged crimes of the six lawyers’ former clients Mr. Oktar and his associates ? the professional duties of the lawyers were termed ‘criminal organisational activities’ by the authorities. Since 2018, the lawyers representing Mr Oktar and his associates have reportedly also been the targets of deliberate and repeated judicial harassment, intimidation and arbitrary detainment by Turkiye’s police. Also, reports imply that the criminal charges against the lawyers lack a clear legal basis and that access to legal counsel has been denied to them. If correct, the human rights violations against the lawyers are consistent with those committed against their former clients. The legal basis of the present charges against the lawyers appears ambiguous and the evidence of violations of fundamental procedural safeguards constitutes an alarming misuse of legislation to prosecute lawyers in the course of their legitimate work. According to the Turkish Prosecutor’s Office, the grounds for the charges against the six lawyers rest on a number of misconduct allegations, namely that the lawyers placed illegitimate pressure on their clients involved in the Adnan Oktar case. The Prosecutor’s Office also alleged that the lawyers transmitted ‘orders and instructions’ to defendants, and that they 'controlled their financial means by aiming to ensure the continuity of a criminal organisation'. All six lawyers strongly deny the claims. In 2022, four of the six lawyers were arrested and detained as they provided counsel to Mr Oktar and his associates.Anne Ramberg Dr Jur hc, IBAHRI Co-Chair and Past Secretary General of the Swedish Bar Association, stated: ‘The continuous judicial harassment, detention, and criminal prosecution of Adnan Oktar’s lawyers in the legitimate course of their professional work as legal practitioners are wilful breaches of Turkiye’s obligations under the Turkish Constitution, Turkish Attorneyship Law, and international law instruments. The IBAHRI vehemently denounces such violations of fundamental legal rights. We call for the intimidation to stop immediately and we urge Turkiye’s courts to uphold the rule of law during this trial and beyond.’The IBAHRI reminds Turkey of its obligations to ensure observance of fair trail rights. Article 58 of the Turkish Attorneyship Law prescribes that ‘all investigations on lawyers induced by crimes arising in connection with their practice of attorneyship will be conducted by the public prosecutor in the jurisdictional area where the crime is committed.’ According to reports, no such permission was sought from the Ministry of Justice by Turkish authorities in their investigation and arrest of the six defence lawyers, indicating significant procedural irregularities. Furthermore, Article 36 of the Turkish Constitution entrenches a defendant’s right to a fair trial through legitimate court procedures. In addition, the IBAHRI also finds that the course of action in the arrest and prosecution of the six lawyers on account of their profession stands in contrast to Turkey’s obligations under international law and related instruments. As a signatory to the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), all levels and branches of the Government of Turkiye are obligated to respect, protect and fulfil the rights guaranteed by the ICCPR, including the right to a fair trial before an independent and impartial tribunal under Article 14. This is further entrenched in Article 10 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the terms of which Turkey are obligated to observe as a UN member. Article 9 of the ICCPR further requires that no one shall be arbitrarily arrested or detained, and no one shall be deprived of their liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedure as is established by law. This is further enshrined under Article 5 and Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), to which Turkey is a signatory. Moreover, under Principle 16 of the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, the Turkish Government must ensure that lawyers are able to perform all of their professional responsibilities without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference and that they ‘shall not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or administrative, economic or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognised professional duties, standards and ethics’.IBAHRI Co-Chair and former President of the Commonwealth Lawyers Association, Mark Stephens CBE stated: ‘The IBAHRI remains deeply concerned over the flagrant denial of due process, judicial harassment and significant violation of domestic and international human rights law which have permeated the criminal proceedings relating to Adnan Oktar and his lawyers. The attempts to create a culture of fear around this case and leave the defendants without proper and sufficient legal defence is deplorable. With respect to the current criminal trials of his lawyers, the IBAHRI asks that the defendants be offered due process, and that all lawyers are able to carry out their legitimate professional activities without fear of intimidation, harassment, or interference, in accordance with domestic and international human rights standards, to ensure the accessibility of justice to all.’ In July 2022, the IBAHRI sent a letter to Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoan, criticising the unlawful arbitrary practices against Adnan Oktar’s lawyers. This letter emphasised that the course of action in the arrest and detainment of the six lawyers was in direct conflict with both domestic and regional law, as well as Turkey’s obligations under international law. No reply has been received. In February 2024, the IBAHRI released a joint report with The Arrested Lawyers Initiative detailing the pattern of detention, prosecution, and conviction of lawyers and civil society activists by Turkish authorities on the basis of vague and broad anti-terrorism offences created since the attempted coup against President Tayyip Erdoan in 2016. Most recently, this included the case of prominent human rights activist, Ozturk Turkdogan, who was arrested and charged in Istanbul on offences of ‘membership of a terrorist organisation’ and for ‘insulting the Turkish State’ following his public statements as co-chair of the Human Rights Association. The alarming trend of the censorship of lawyers in Turkey has since led to numerous court rulings against Turkey at the European Court of Human Rights for violations of the ECHR, with several judgments concluding that this abuse of vague anti-terrorism legislation has led to arbitrary convictions that lack clear evidence or any sufficiently convincing legal basis. Background to the case of Adnan Oktar and his more than 200 associatesThe case concerning Mr Oktar has been ongoing since 2018. He was first arrested by Turkish Police in July of that year at his home on criminal charges that included forming a criminal enterprise and financial fraud. The Turkish authorities then arrested 168 of his associates on similar charges in a large-scale police operation. In 2021, Mr Oktar was sentenced to 1,075 years in prison. In March 2022, the sentence was overturned by the Istanbul Regional Court of Justice. In November 2022, following an extensive public campaign against the judges who handed down the sentence, a retrial was ordered by a Turkish appeal court for all defendants including Mr Oktar. At this retrial, Mr Oktar’s sentence was commuted to 8,658 years in prison on charges including sexual abuse, deprivation of liberty and running a criminal enterprise. The arrest, detainment and prosecution of the defendants in this case are reportedly hallmarked by significant violations of legal procedure and human rights law including restrictions to access legal counsel on multiple occasions for Mr Oktar and his associates. The IBAHRI implores the Turkish judiciary to comply with their obligations imposed by domestic and international human rights legislation in this current case and others, and ensure due process is afforded to all defendants to prevent any further miscarriages of justice.ENDS Contact: IBAHRI@int-bar.org Notes to the EditorThe International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI), established in 1995 under Founding Honorary President Nelson Mandela, is an autonomous entity working to promote, protect and enforce human rights under a just rule of law, and to preserve the independence of the judiciary and the legal profession worldwide.Find the IBAHRI on social media here: www.x.com/IBAHRI www.facebook.com/IBAhumanrights www.linkedin.com/in/iba-human-rights-institute/ The International Bar Association (IBA), the global voice of the legal profession, is the foremost organisation for international legal practitioners, bar associations and law societies. Established in 1947, shortly after the creation of the United Nations, with the aim of protecting and promoting the rule of law globally, the IBA was born out of the conviction that an organisation made up of the world's bar associations could contribute to global stability and peace through the administration of justice.Find the IBA on social media here: www.x.com/IBAnews www.x.com/IBAevents www.facebook.com/internationalbarassociation www.linkedin.com/company/international-bar-association
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