Indictment of Turkish freedom of speech lawyer

Who we wrote to

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the president of the Republic of Turkey.

What’s the issue

Veysel Ok is a Turkish lawyer who has defended dozens of journalists in Turkey who have been prosecuted for their work.

In 2019, he was awarded the prestigious Thomas Dehler Medal for his work in advocating for freedom of speech and the rule of law in Turkey

We’re deeply concerned with the indictment of Mr Ok, who has been charged with offences “denigrating the Turkish judicial system” relating to comments he gave in a 2015 interview where he expressed his views on the independence of the Turkish judiciary.

What we asked for

We urged the Turkish authorities to discontinue the indictment and proceedings against Mr Ok. We’ll continue to monitor Mr Ok’s case, and those of other lawyers who have been indicted, arrested and detained.

All lawyers and human rights defenders in Turkey should be able to carry out their legitimate professional activities without fear of reprisals and improper interference.