ISTANBUL — On Tuesday, Sept. 9, members of the Istanbul Bar Association stood trial in a Silivri prison courtroom. They faced charges of “making terrorist propaganda” and “spreading misleading information” for issuing a December 2024 statement calling for an investigation into the murder of two journalists in Syria.
The bar’s elected president and executive board were removed by a court order in March, and their trial has since drawn international attention. In a statement last week, 12 human rights groups described the prosecution of Istanbul’s bar as a “direct assault” on the independence of the legal profession through “vague and legally baseless” allegations.
Speaking at a Sept. 1 press event marking the start of the fall judicial session, Istanbul Bar Pres. Ibrahim Kaboğlu detailed how lawyers in Turkey have been facing a rising number of investigations, detentions and “arbitrary restrictions” on their work.
Despite such pressures, he called on the nation’s lawyers “to continue working and struggling relentlessly to make the new judicial year better than the previous one.”
As state prosecutors have expanded their corruption investigations into the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), at least 10 defense and human rights lawyers have been detained or arrested, as well.
The ongoing pressure on lawyers has deepened distrust in Turkey’s politicized judicial system, which opposition politicians claim targets dissidents while letting government allies off easy.
‘IBB Borsası’
The opposition’s sentiments of injustice in the legal system might be best encapsulated by the term ‘IBB Borsası’.
In English, the direct translation is the ‘Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Stock Exchange’. Though in political discourse, the phrase is used by opposition figures who claim some lawyers and prosecutors engage in schemes to extort individuals or companies in exchange for favorable court decisions.
"The ‘IBB Borsası’ scandal that has emerged shows with full clarity how a dual justice system has been built,” Gül Çiftçi, CHP's deputy chair for legal affairs, told Turkey recap, citing the June arrest of Mehmet Pehlivan, a lawyer representing Imamoğlu.
“On one side, [Pehlivan], who is simply carrying out his professional duties and exercising the right to defense, is unfairly held in prison. While on the other, those involved in million-dollar deals can walk free. This double standard has completely destroyed trust in the judiciary.”
She added that in the last 10 months, there have been 35 waves of arrests, detentions, investigations under the authority of the Istanbul courthouse, meaning that an operation has taken place almost every five working days.
As investigations into the CHP expand, lawyers handling the IBB defense have reported access restrictions on legal files and the interrogation of their clients without notification to their lawyers.
They also claim pro-government media outlets create negative narratives about lawyers representing opposition figures. An indictment against the IBB is expected in October.
Mehmet Pehlivan
On June 19, an Istanbul prosecutor’s office requested a meeting with Pehlivan at the Çağlayan Courthouse. He accepted, though when the meeting suddenly turned into an interrogation, Pehlivan refused to give a statement.
He cited the lack of permission from the Ministry of Justice to open an investigation against a lawyer, which the prosector’s office had not obtained and is required by law.
Pehlivan was then referred to a court, arrested and sent to Çorlu Closed Prison where he has remained for 88 days as of the publication of this article. Every item presented as the reason for Pehlivan's arrest is within the scope of the legal practice.
His detention is reviewed every month and the most recent review was conducted Friday morning, before he participated in Imamoğlu’s hearing via SEGBIS, a video conferencing system that allows people in detention to testify in court – or in Pehlivan's case, to defend a client in court.
Following Pehlivan’s video appearance, 76 bar associations condemned the practice in statement, arguing it “eliminates the right of defense.”
Pehlivan’s arrest continues on the grounds there is a “strong suspicion of a crime.” At the time of writing, the Ministry of Justice had yet to issue an investigation permit for Pehlivan.
Mehmet Yıldırım
In stark contrast, is the case of lawyer Mehmet Yıldırım. Early last month, CHP Chair Özgür Özel claimed Yıldırım was on good terms with prosecutors and used his influence to request payments from families of detainees in exchange for more favorable court rulings.
Özel said he had evidence, including voice recordings and WhatsApp messages, to support his allegations. A day later, Yıldırım was detained while trying to flee to Greece. After one more day, he was released on judicial control with a travel ban.
The Council of Judges and Prosecutors has yet to take action regarding the original complaint filed against the prosecutor at the center of Özel’s allegations.
Mücahit Birinci
Another case involves lawyer Mücahit Birinci, a prominent politician with the Justice and Development Party (AKP). He allegedly visited businessman Murat Kapki, who was under arrest in the IBB investigation, and offered him $2 million to sign a prepared statement against Imamoğlu, Özel, Pehlivan and others.
Kapki refused the offer and reported his experience to the prosecutor’s office, filing a criminal complaint on Aug. 12. The next day, Özel unveiled the criminal complaint document during a live broadcast.
The prosecutor’s office then launched an investigation. This time, permission was requested and granted from the Ministry of Justice. On Aug. 26, Birinci gave a court statement and he was released under judicial control.
Justice Min. Yılmaz Tunç, however, criticized the opposition regarding the allegations. While stating that the claims had no connection to the judiciary or the prosecutor’s office, in his capacity as the head of the Council of Judges and Prosecutors, he said the petitions filed against prosecutors were “empty”.
‘Devaluing’ lawyers
Commenting on recent developments, lawyer Kasım Akbaş, an advisor to the chair of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, said that the difficulties faced by the defense lawyers in Turkey are not new.
“For decades, lawyers in Turkey have been fighting attacks on their clients’ right to defense and on their profession,” Akbaş told Turkey recap.
He added, “In some recent high-profile trials, we see that the actions described as ‘crimes’ by lawyers are entirely legal activities. The strategies of lawyers – how to meet with their detained clients and how to formulate defense arguments – form the basis of the criminal accusations.”
Akbaş, went on, arguing that an attack on the legal profession is the first step in a systematic and deliberate process of rights violations.
“The ‘devaluing’ of the lawyer, who is the representative of the right to a defense – one of the most important components of the right to a fair trial – makes the trial unfair,” he continued.
“In fact, one can no longer even speak of a trial, because where there is no defense, there is only a ‘pre-judgement’ and not a ‘trial.’”
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Emily Rice Johnson, Deputy editor
Günsu Durak, Turkey recap Türkçe editor
Ceren Bayar, Parliament correspondent