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Home arrow newsitems arrow CoE: European Judges Associations denounce atrocious Mass Oppression of Judges in Turkey

CoE: European Judges Associations denounce atrocious Mass Oppression of Judges in Turkey

Written by ACM
Monday, 10 October 2016
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*Strasbourg/CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- The most Important European Associations of Judges, gathered Together on the sidelines of CoE Parliamentary Assembly's (PACE) Autumn 2016 Plenary Session in Strasbourg, at the initiative of its Experienced former President, f. Minister and Head of the Liberal Group of MEPs, Anne Brasseur, from Luxembourg, slamed what they described as an unprecedented and atrocious Massive Oppression of Tens of Thousands of Judges, still Persisting in Turkey, on pretext of an alleged Coup Attempt of Less than 6 Hours, last July 2016, before a "Hot" Urgent public Debate on the general Situation in that Country, decided by PACE here for Thursday, (Comp. also : ...).

 

 

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 - Edith Zeller, President of the Association of European Administrative Judges, (i.e. those who are entrusted with the Task to rule on the most Sensitive Cases for Human Rights, Freedoms and Democracy, concerning Citizens' relations to Public Authorities), speaking later-on to "Eurofora", expressed Strong Doubts about Ankara's shaky Claim that "more than 2.500 or 3.000 Dismissed Judges would have been related to that Strange, short-lived "Coup" Attempt.


>>> Moreover, in her Official Speech at the above-mentioned PACE Side-Event (Comp. Supra), she Strongly Denounced, inter alia, also several "Rapes" of arrested "Women and Men", added to some "75 Suicide Attempts" among those Detainees, as well as the Fact that Ankara Government's "Prosecutors just have one and Same List of Questions for Everyone", WithOut making a real "Individual Examination" of Each Person's Case, in Violation of ECHR's Article 6 on the Human Right to a "Fair Trial".


- F.ex., when an accused, prosecuted and Detained Judge simply asks : - "Why Me ?", most of the Times he doesn't get any real Answer, except from a routinely Repeated, general and vague Formula, abused by Turkish pro-AKP Government Prosecutors for all of those detainees, she characteristicaly Explained, later-on, to "Eurofora".


Meanwhile, except from a Human Rights Watch query, made by that World-Famous NGO itself, it's Only CoE's "Committee to Prevent Torture" (CPT) which Visited some involved Turkish Prisons, recently, but its fortthcoming Report won't be made Public, as long as the Ankara Government opposes its Publication, according to the CPT Statute's Rules. As for a planned Fact-finding "Visit by UNO's Rapporteur on Torture", from Nearby Geneva, it "was Postponed by Turkey to November", more than a Month Later, she Regretted. -"All these things (among a Longer list) make us Believe that there is Something to be Investigated", Zeller concluded.


+ Another Legal Expert from the Dutch-speaking "Judges for Judges" NGO, Denounced, in Addition, the Fact that Turkish Prosecutors even "Take the Salaries" of the Victims, who, therefore, "canNot Afford" to pay Lawyers for a real Defense, and cited a series of cases resulting in "Absurd" situations, where, f.ex., "from the 7 Defense Lawyers, 4 Laid Down their Defense" mandates recently.


In Addition, those Detainees are Allowed "Only 25 Minutes per Week" (sic !) for Communication with their Lawyers, etc., while any "Visits Last only 5 Minutes per Month", he denounced.


Most Important : Various such Massive Persecutions of alleged dissident Judges had Already Started as Early as "since 2015", so that they obviously canNot be really Attibuted to that Strange, 6 Hours-long, alleged "Coup" Attempt, the Dutch Expert representing the "Rechters voor Rechters", specialized Human Rights NGO, criticaly concluded.


++ => In Consequence, after having Attested such and other, Massive Gross Violations of many Thousands of Dismissed Judges' basic Human Rights, several competent European Organisations have recently decided to "Examine a Suspension request against the current Turkish "Higher Council of Judges", while Others "already have Stoped any Relations"  with them, Revealed the President of the European Association of Judges, (which Includes All Judges, i.e. also those who deal with Cases Between Citizens, etc), Christophe Regnard.


- Reacting, the Ambassador of Turkey, accused all those Experts at the CoE to make "UnSubstantiated" Denonciations, Claiming that they were "Not Documented".


- Replying, President Anne Brasseur, while acknowledging a possible need for the Turkish Authorities to Check if some Judges might have, eventualy, miss-behaved for Political reasons in some cases, (as they routinely Claim), but Strongly Rejected as Unacceptable, the abuse, by that Turkish Ambassador, of the Wording "Clean up" (sic !), in order to designate the current Massive Prosecutions of Dissident Judges, and stressed that PACE, as a matter of General Principle, does Not Admit for "Human Rights to be Trampled underfoot".


+++ During a subsequent, "Free" Debate at CoE's Assembly, later this Afternoon, it's also the President of PACE's "EuroLeft" Group, Dutch Senator Tiny Cox, who slamed Ankara's "Coup" Pretext as "a False Excuse" to massively violate elementary Human Rights, both in these and many other cases, Warning that if there might, eventualy, have existed a Danger for Human Rights "from that (alleged) Coup Attempt" of mid-July 2016, in fact, anOther such "Danger" is "also the Turkish Government itself"...


Meanwhlle, a Hearing of CoE's Human Rights' Commissioner, Nils Muijnieks, by the PanEuropean Organisation's Parliamentary Assembly''s Committee on Legal affairs and Human Rights, which was Focused on his Recently Published, critical Report about the current situation of the Freedom of Media in Turkey, (See, f.ex. : .....), was Held Behind Closed Doors ("in Camera"), later-on, this Afternoon.



(../..)

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 sarko_merkel_mieux

The official presentation of a "Program" respecting People's choices voted in the June 7, 2009 EU Elections, to be debated in EU Council and EU Parliament during its 1st Session on July in Strasbourg, is the No 1 Priority, according to Democratic principles, for the Franco-German axis, said the main winners at the ballot box, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angie Merkel.

They stressed  that the New EU Commission's President must have a "Program" in favor of an EU which "protects" its Citizens, regulates financial markets and aims at a "Political" Europe" : a wording they have used as incompatible with Turkey's controversial EU bid.

They also declared ready for a "political" endorsment of "Mr. Barroso's candidacy" in June's EU Council, considering that an official decision would have to be made after EU Parliament's debates and votes, possibly from next month (July), with the legally necessary final acceptance shortly after Lisbon Treaty's entry into force, hoped for September or October.


- "A Program, and Mr. Barroso" : This resumes, in substance, the anouncements made by Sarkozy and Merkel, on the question of current EU Commission's President, Barroso's declared wish to succeed to himself for a second mandate, to be extended during the following 5 years.

 In their 1st meeting after EU Elections, they observed that "the Franco-German axis counted in European Elections' campaign... But, we both keep a realistic view : We saw the number of those who abstained, and we must absolutely give them an answer. We also see the disilusionment of an important number of Europeans vis a vis Europe, and we are aware of the responsibilities we have".

sarko

 - The "Duty" of the new EU Commission's President, after June 7, 2009 EU Elections' result, "is to act for a Europe which protects the Europeans, to commit himself into working for a better Regulation of Financial transactions, ... and to have a Political will for Europe", underlined Sarkozy.

Therefore, "we have asked M. Barroso... to clarify, to officialy present the intentions he has", he anounced.

- "We want to speak also about the Programme", explained Merkel.

- "It's important that for the next EU Parliament's mandate (2009-2014) we take the right Decisions for Europe.  Obviously on Persons, but mainly Decisions on Issues", she stressed.

- "It's not simply a question of a Person, it's also a question of a Programme". We are "really asking Mr. Barroso to commit himself on a Program, and on Principles, on Values", Sarkozy added.

EU President-in-office, Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer, accepted the Franco-German stance :

- "Barroso must present his Programme. The Czech Presidency agrees with that", Fischer reportedly said later, after meeting Sarkozy.

But Press reports from Brussels claimed that Barroso had preferred to be officially appointed by EU Council since June, (i.e. next week), "because this was implied by the current Treaty of Nice, according to him", and considered any delay until the possible ratification of the new, Lisbon Treaty on September/October, as "undemocratic".

- "At any case, independently of what Germany and France ask, it's also EU Parliament's wish". "We shall propose Mr Barroso's candidacy... But even in the framework of Nice Treaty, EU Parliament has to be associated in this Decision", the French President observed.

If this is correctly done, then "we support Mr. Barroso's candidature", and "if the (EU) Parliament agrees, we might ratify this decision since July", (i.e. next month), they both said.

smerkem_400

- "France and Germany support Baroso's candidacy, But we want to speak also on the Program. We believe that this Program should be established in close cooperation with EU Parliament, and that's why we have followed an appropriate way", said Merkel.  - If EU Parliament wants, this election can take place on July,  but this must be done in full agreement.

- "We shall support Mr. Barroso's candidacy, without doubt", said Sarkozy. "But we have asked from Mr. Barroso, as I told him yesterday, to put into detail.. his intentions, at the eve of his 2nd mandate, if the situation avails itself.


    France and Germany "don't want to take an Official Legal Decision by writting" during "the next (EU) Council" (on June 18-19), declared Sarkozy.  Because they prefer, at this stage, only "a Political decision" on June, "so that we (EU Council) can work together with EU Parliament", which starts to meet only Next Month, since July in Srasbourg, "leaving a Legal decision by writting for later".

    - "If the Conditions are fuillfiled in EU Parliament, we (EU Council) are ready to give the agreement and make it offficial", said Merkel

    - "But, now we are working in the base of Nice Treaty. If tommorow we want to work in the spirit of Lisbon Treaty, we have to find a proper way", she added.

    - "Of course it's Legally complicated, because we are going to make a Political proposal to the forthcoming Council, for an EU Commission's President, on the basis of Nice Treaty : So, we (EU Council) will not appoint the Commissioners. Only the President.  If EU Parliament agrees, it could endorse this position on July", explained Sarkozy.

    But, on Autumn, "if Ireland ratifies Lisbon Treaty, there will be, at any case, a 2nd Decision, to appoint the Commission's President, this time on the basis of Lisbon treaty, and then, we, the EU Member States, would have to appoint (also) the EU Commissioners", he added.

    As for the precise Timing :  - "Everything is suspended until the Irish vote... Now, we must all make everything possible to help Ireland to say "Yes"" to Lisbon Treaty... The Irish Referendum, ..will take place either on September or on October. It's a Question which depends on the Irish. And,  then, we shall have the Choice of the Candidates for the permanent Institutions of Europe".

    However, "if Ireland says No, we, French and Germans, have to assume our responsibilities, and we'll do so", he concluded.

    But British and Swedish governments were reportedly eager to have a final EU Council decision on Barroso since this month, on June's European Council. While the other EU Member Countries are divided, several of them preferring to wait until EU Parliament pronounces itself, on July, and/or until Lisbon Treaty might be ratified by Ireland at the beginning of the Autumn. Barroso's current mandate ends on November.

    There are also various, contradictory and/or unpredictable reactions inside EU Parliament vis a vis Barroso's wish to continue a 2nd mandate, because many MEPs are openly or secretly opposed, reluctant, or hesitating.

    In the biggest EU Countries, as France and Germany, EU Citizens voted on June 2009 EU Elections for a renovated, non-technocratic but Political Europe which cares for its Citizens, with an Identity, Values and Borders, declared incompatible with Turkey's controversial EU bid, by mainstream, pro-European Governing Parties. Similar choices were also supported in several other small or medium EU Countries.

    On the contrary, whenever, in other Countries, Governing and other mainstream Parties didn't make these choices or eluded them, EU Citizens massively voted for euro-Sceptics whenever they were the only ones to to promise anti-bureacratic change and oppose Turkey's demand to enter into the EU, (f.ex. in the UK, Netherlands, etc).

    It's seems to be an Open Question whether Sarkozy and Merkel's conditions will be really accepted by Barroso, who was appointed on 2004 in a different political context, (with Socialist Prime Ministers in Germany, France, etc), had rejected in the Past the idea of EU becoming "equal to the USA" as "ridiculous", and pushed for Turkey's contoversial EU bid, trying to "soften" or contain the changes desired by the People who voted for Merkel and Sarkozy with another policy vis a vis Turkey on 2005 in Germany and on 2007 in France, as they did all over Europe on 2009.

    In addition to many EPP Governments, it's 3 remaining Socialist Prime Ministers : Gordon Brown in the UK, Zapatero in Spain, and Socrates in Prortugal, who support Barroso, as well as Liberal Swedish Prime Minister Reinfeldt. But their Parties lost the June 2009 EU Elections.

    Questioned whether there was still "Time" for "other" possible "Candidates", Sarkozy and Merkel did not deny, nor made any comment on that, but simply said that "it's not for us to make publicity for any candidates. We anounced our choice ("A Program, and Mr. Barroso"). But we respect any other candidate".

    Among various other names cited are former Belgian Prime Minister Verhofstadt, former UNO's Human Rights Commissioner Mary Robinson of Ireland, Italian former EU Commission's vice-President Monti, etc. Meanwhile, Luxembourg's PM Juncker, (who had been unanimously accepted by EU Council for EU Commission's Presidency on 2004, but refused), announced his intention to resign from "EuroGroup"'s Chair. Thus, he might be available for another Top EU job.

    As "EuroFora"'s "opinion" said (See publication dated 9/6/09) : - "If the current candidates (i.e. Barroso, etc) to the Top EU jobs promise and guarantee to respect People's democratic choices, then, it's OK".

"Otherwise, Europe must find new candidates, really motivated and able to implement these democratic choices of the People."

    Because, "in Democracy, the forthcoming choices for EU's Top Jobs,...should be made according to EU Citizens' Votes in June 7, 2009 European Elections, and main EU Governments' strategic policies".
        

***

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