The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) deplores the conviction of ten lawyers, including Ramazan Demir, a member of the defence team of Selahattin Demirtaş, who remains in detention despite binding ECtHR judgments, and the prison sentences imposed on them following a mass trial before the İstanbul 14 Heavy Penal Court. Their prosecutions appear to have been undertaken in reprisal for the legitimate and lawful exercise of their professional functions, and their convictions resulted from an unfair trial
The ICJ urges the Turkish authorities to quash the convictions of Ramazan Demir and other lawyers convicted for their legitimate professional activities, or otherwise ensure their reversal on appeal. to ensure that no lawyer is identified with their clients or their clients’ causes, and to bring law and practice into full conformity with international human rights law and standards governing the independence and protection of the legal profession.
“These convictions amount to the criminalization of legal defence,” said Temur Shakirov, Director of the ICJ Europe and Central Asia Programme. “Imposing these prison sentences on lawyers for their professional activities violates the rights of lawyers and constitutes a blow to the justice system as a whole.”
The verdict was announced in the trial of 50 people, including 12 lawyers who are members of the Association of Lawyers for Freedom (ÖHD) and members of the now-closed Association for Solidarity with the Families of Prisoners (TUAD).
On 28 January 2026, the court convicted Ramazan Demir of “membership of an armed terrorist organization” and “making propaganda for an armed organization” and sentenced him to 11 years and three months’ imprisonment. In the same proceedings, the court also convicted nine other lawyers affiliated with the Association of Lawyers for Freedom of membership of an armed terrorist organization, imposing prison sentences on several of them. The charges and convictions were alleged to have relied on acts inherent to legal defence work, including prison visits, contacts with clients, legal correspondence, monitoring of hearings, and engagement with international protection mechanisms.
The ICJ recalls that, under international human rights law and standards, lawyers must be able to carry out their professional duties without intimidation, hindrance, harassment, or improper interference. Criminal proceedings and convictions that are based on, or substantially rely upon, the identification of lawyers with their clients or with the causes they defend are incompatible with these obligations. The prosecution and punishment of lawyers for actions that fall within the scope of recognized professional duties undermine the right of access to a lawyer and the proper administration of justice.
Background
Of the 12 lawyers tried in the proceedings, 10 were convicted. The convicted lawyers are Ramazan Demir, Ayşe Acinikli, Hüseyin Boğatekin, Şefik Çelik, Adem Çalışçı, Tamer Doğan, Ayşe Gösterişlioğlu, Sinan Zincir, Raziye Öztürk and Ruşen Mahmutoğlu. Mustafa Rüzgar and İrfan Arasan were acquitted.
The proceedings stem from arrests and prosecutions initiated in 2016 against lawyers associated with Kurdish human rights cases. The trial started in June 2016 and continued for nearly ten years. During this period, several lawyers were held in pre-trial detention. On 28 January 2026, the İstanbul 14 Heavy Penal Court delivered its verdict, convicting multiple lawyers and acquitting others.
