The European Criminal Bar Association (ECBA), alongside an international coalition of co-signatories, has co-signed an urgent statement expressing grave concern regarding a new wave of large-scale, coordinated police operations across Turkey targeting legal professionals, journalists, students, and academics.
Among those targeted are prominent members and leadership of the Progressive Lawyers Association (Çağdaş Hukukçular Derneği, ÇHD). These pre-dawn raids and subsequent detentions involved severe violations of due process, including forced entries by police, a 24-hour restriction on access to legal counsel, and strict confidentiality orders imposed on investigation files. These arbitrary measures prevent defense teams from reviewing accusations or evidence, fundamentally undermining the right to a fair trial and directly interfering with the right to defense.
Update on Outcomes
Following recent court appearances, several of our colleagues have been remanded in custody, while others face ongoing restrictions:
- Imprisoned: Atty. Ezgi Önalan (Chair of the ÇHD İstanbul Branch) and Atty. Yunus Emre Işık have now been placed in prison. They join Atty. Semra Demir, Atty. Doğa İncesu, and Atty. Kürşat Bafra, who remain detained on remand.
- Released with Restrictions: The other colleagues taken into custody during these operations have been released but remain subject to a restrictive travel ban.
Our Demand
The ECBA strongly condemns the systematic criminalization of the legal profession and the routine use of the criminal justice system as a pre-emptive tool to silence civil society and public discourse. We call upon the relevant authorities to immediately and unconditionally release all remaining imprisoned colleagues, lift the restrictive travel bans and confidentiality orders, and ensure unimpeded access to independent legal counsel.
We stand in unwavering solidarity with our colleagues in Turkey and will continue to monitor these developments closely.
The full international call, issued on 7 July 2026 and updated with an expanded list of global signatory organizations on 8 July 2026, can be read here.