TURKEY: The OIAD and the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders stand by the Saturday Mothers’ lawyers

February 27, 2024 marked the opening of the first trial following the decision of the Turkish Constitutional Court, which confirmed that Galatasaray Square is a public space where demonstrations are allowed. Lawyer Oya Meriç Eyüboğlu was among the defendants in the trial.

For more than 20 years, the Saturday Mothers (Cumartesi Anneleri/İnsanları in Turkish) have gathered peacefully in Istanbul’s Galatasaray Square in the form of a vigil every Saturday at noon to demand accountability for the enforced disappearances that took place in the 1980s and 1990s in Turkey.

On 16 November 2022, the Turkish Constitutional Court recognised the legitimacy of the Saturday Mothers gatherings. This decision, confirmed again on 29 March 2023, allowed the movement to demonstrate peacefully on Galatasaray Square. However, the Turkish authorities attempted to suppress the movement by restricting access to Galatasaray Square.

Given this blatant restriction of the right to peaceful demonstration, the authorities have not hesitated to attack the lawyers representing the movement. Some of the Saturday Mothers’ lawyers have also been targeted.

The International Observatory for Lawyers in Danger was in Istanbul, Turkey, with the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT). The organisations joined forces to support colleague Oya Meriç Eyüboğlu, a well-known lawyer for Saturday Mothers in Turkey and defender of many journalists and human rights defenders threatened by the Turkish authorities.

Far from being isolated, the case of the Saturday Mothers highlights the crucial importance of defending fundamental rights such as freedom of expression and the right to demonstrate peacefully. It is crucial that the Turkish authorities respect and protect these rights, thereby ensuring an environment where justice and democracy can flourish. The ongoing defence of these fundamental principles remains a priority for the international community in order to promote peace, justice and respect for human rights in Turkey and throughout the world.

The International Observatory for Lawyers in Danger thanks its observers Benedetta Perego, from the Turin Bar (Italy) and Olivier Maricourt, from the Lille Bar (France) for their unwavering commitment to the protection of lawyers. The OIAD also thanks the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and its observers Elena Crespi, Ulviyya Hasanova and Gulsah Kurt for their precious collaboration during this crucial mission.