‘We don’t accept that bar associations stay silent about Aysel Tuğluk’

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Women lawyers held a protest demonstration in front of the İstanbul Bar Association today (February 18) and raised concerns about the condition of ill prisoners, especially Aysel Tuğluk, who has been diagnosed with dementia and is still arrested in the Kocaeli Kandıra Prison.

The Forensic Medicine Institution previously concluded that former Vice Co-Chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Aysel Tuğluk was in a medical state to stay in prison. In its latest report dated February 4 and sent to the Ankara 22nd High Criminal Court, the Institution indicated that Tuğluk has "full criminal liability" and "mild cognitive impairment."

Gathering in front of the İstanbul Bar today, lawyers requested that execution of Tuğluk's sentence be deferred. They stressed that she should be released from prison immediately for her treatment.

Joined by women rights defenders and opposition MPs as well, the statement for the press was read out by lawyer Yelda Koçak Urfa.

Forensic medical reports

Koçak Urfa recalled that Aysel Tuğluk, who has been behind bars for 5 years, is the first woman co-chair of a party in the history of Kurdish political parties and the only woman MP faced with a political ban. 

Stressing that Tuğluk is also a rights advocate and lawyer in addition to her political identity and recalling that she is a lawyer of the İstanbul Bar Association, lawyer Koçak Urfa underlined that the Forensic Medicine Department of the Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine had issued a medical report on Aysel Tuğluk's health condition and concluded that her condition was in a nature preventing her from leading her life on her own and, thus, the execution of her sentence should be deferred.

At this point, the lawyer recalled that the Forensic Medicine Institution, which is the authorized institution to decide to postpone the execution of a sentence, disregarded the report issued in Kocaeli and "without conducting any examination or observation, it prepared a report in September 2021, concluding that Aysel Tuğluk could stay in prison."

As indicated in the statement, Aysel Tuğluk is also arrested as part of the "Kobanî trial" against the HDP politicians. Lawyer Yelda Koçak Urfa noted that as the court insistently asked for a statement from Tuğluk despite her being able to make defense, the court referred her to the Forensic Medicine Institution upon her lawyers' request to find out whether she is in a condition to prepare and make a statement of defense.

Referring to the report prepared by the Institution following this referral and 3-day observation, the lawyer criticized that the Institution did not make an evaluation as to whether Tuğluk can make defense or not, but issued a report concluding that "she has full criminal liability."

'Only two pages about her health condition'

Sharing further details from the latest report of the Forensic Medicine Institution on Aysel Tuğluk, lawyer Koçak Urfa said that while the report has 25 pages, 16 pages have been allocated to a summary of the investigations and lawsuits brought against Aysel Tuğluk so far. "Only in two pages, there are medical findings of the Institution," said the lawyer, adding:

"We are aware that the only reason why the physicians at the Forensic Medicine Institution widely mentioned the accusations like public prosecutors is to occupy the public with allegations of crime and to hide the real health condition of Aysel Tuğluk from the public.

"It is understood even from these limited findings and evaluations in the Forensic Medicine Institution report that it is impossible for Ms. Aysel Tuğluk to make defense in her current condition.

"However, despite these findings, the Forensic Medicine Institution has especially avoided expressing opinions about this issue and made do with an evaluation solely about the aspect of criminal liability."

Criticizing the Institution for preparing "a report against the science of medicine" and recalling that it has long been making news for preparing "reports that are contrary to ethics, conscience, science and law", the lawyer stressed that the Institution "denies the dementia" of Tuğluk.

Referring to Aysel Tuğluk's continued imprisonment, Koçak Urfa said, "While her health condition is obvious, all administrative and judicial authorities that insistently do not do the necessary and ignore this situation, primarily the Ministry of Justice, are responsible here."

'Bar associations stay silent'

Further in her statement, women lawyers' statement specifically referred to the responsibility and silence of bar associations:

One of the reasons why we are in front of the İstanbul Bar Association today is because the bar associations, one of the fundamental duties of which is to ensure and inspect that human rights are protected, stay silent about ill prisoners and deaths in prisons, which have frequently come to the public agenda in the recent period.

It is unacceptable that the İstanbul Bar Association, which boasts about being the biggest bar association of the world, has so far stayed silent about Aysel Tuğluk, who is one of its own members. We call on the 82 provincial bar associations, especially the İstanbul Bar Association, and the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, to defend the right to life of Aysel Tuğluk and that of all ill prisoners in her person.

Recalling that Aysel Tuğluk struggled against all types of violence targeting women and strived for women's freedom for years, women lawyers "object what she is made to go through today and request her release".

"In the light of our request for 'Justice for Women', we reiterate our request that Aysel Tuğluk and all women who have been imprisoned for political reasons be freed," the women lawyers said.

They also called on "all authorities who played a part in this unlawful process against Tuğluk to act in line with the law, science and conscience" and reminded them that "she must be released immediately so that her treatment can continue in a manner complying with human dignity." Concluding their remarks, the women reiterated their call for solidarity. (RT/SD)