Istanbul Bar Association reacts to the detention of lawyer Onur Büyükhatipoğlu

The Bar Association issued a written statement regarding the detentions and arrests of mayors, politicians, journalists, and lawyers that have been ongoing in recent months.

The statement includes the following:

"Turkey began the day once again with news of mayors being detained. New waves of detentions and operations are being added every day to the large number of mayors already in custody, the municipalities where trustees have been appointed, and elected officials. This situation clearly shows that the March 31, 2024 Local Elections are not recognized by the political power and that the will of the people is not respected. These undemocratic and unlawful practices threaten the constitutional order.

On the other hand, our Bar member, lawyer Onur Büyükhatipoğlu, has also been detained under the instructions of the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. According to reports in the press, the accusations against our colleague, similar to those against lawyer Mehmet Pehlivan who was recently arrested, are based on his legal activities.

The waves of investigations and detentions directed at all segments of society in recent months—from students to journalists, from ordinary citizens to politicians—and the fact that the judiciary is now targeting lawyers, the subjects of the defense, and that lawyers are facing the threat of investigation and arrest entirely due to their professional activities, is an extremely dangerous move aimed at eliminating the right to defense. If the defense is under threat, justice is in danger; if justice is under threat, the Republic is in danger.

In a period where the professions of judgeship and prosecution do not exist in the constitutional sense, and where judicial practice is entirely instrumentalized for the survival of the political power, practicing law is seen as a crime because it also means trying to disrupt this construct. Every lawyer who provides legal assistance to their client, visits them in prison, follows up on files, or in short, performs their duty with care, diligence, and responsibility, is committing a crime in the eyes of the political power!

As the Istanbul Bar Association, we state clearly: if practicing law is now considered a crime, our more than 67 thousand members and all our colleagues who perform their duties with honor are committing the crime of practicing law, and they will continue to do so from now on! What is criminal is silencing the defense. To those who see the legal profession as a crime, our only word is the reality that one day everyone will need a lawyer and justice, and when that time comes, the lawyers they currently view as criminals will defend them with the same care and responsibility."

News Source: 12punto