This Action is co-financed by European Union and the Council of Europe under “Horizontal Facility II Programme”.

Beneficiary Institution

The Department of Human Rights of the Ministry of Justice, which is the unit responsible for the coordination and monitoring of the implementation of Action Plans on Human Rights in Turkey, is the main partner and beneficiary of the Action.

Stakeholders

Related units of the Ministry of Justice, the Justice Academy, the Ministry of Interior, judiciary and other relevant authorities as well as lawyers, academics, journalists and civil society organizations are among the stakeholders of the Action.

Budget

The total budget of the Action is 1.200.000 Euros. The budget allocated to the overall Horizontal Facility programme amounts to ca. 41 Million EUR (85% funded by the European Union, 15% by the Council of Europe).

Duration

The Action started on 1 September 2019 and was initially planned to be implemented for 18 months in support of the early Action Plan on the Prevention of ECHR violations (2014). Due to delays related to Covid-19 measures, the Action was extended until 31 December 2021. This will also afford the possibility to support implementation and reporting on the Action Plan on Human Rights which was announced on 2 March 2021.

Objective of the Action

The main objective of the Action is to contribute to the protection of human rights in Turkey by increasing the institutional capacity of Turkish authorities, primarily of the Department of Human Rights of the Ministry of Justice in order to support the implementation and reporting of the “Action Plan on Human Rights”.

Specific objectives of the Action:

The action focuses on three thematic areas of the Action Plan on Human Rights (the right to liberty and security, the right to a fair trial and freedom of expression).

Implemented activities have aimed:

• To facilitate expert advice on implementation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), in particular Article 5 (Right to liberty and security), Article 6 (Right to a fair trial), Article 10 (Freedom of expression). This was achieved through the preparation of needs assessment reports and the organisation of roundtable discussions, including with members of the judiciary.
• To provide guidance on good practices and possible institutional mechanisms to support implementation of Turkey’s successive Action Plans. This was achieved through expert briefings relying on existing international recommendations e.g. on the need for regular reporting and a monitoring framework with clear indicators for expected results, and the facilitation of peer-to-peer exchange with countries who have implemented similar plans (Finland, Scotland-UK, Georgia).

Activities foreseen in 2021 include comparative research on legislation in place in other Council of Europe members, support to dissemination of the Action Plan’s objectives and targets, and provision of institutional and capacity-building support when needed.

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By the end of the Action, the aim is to ensure that the findings and outcomes in the areas of the right to liberty and security, the right to a fair trial and freedom of expression will contribute to the achievement of aims and objectives foreseen in the Action Plan on Human Rights; strengthening of the technical qualifications of the staff of the Ministry of Justice who will be involved in the effective monitoring, assessment and reporting of the Action Plan; and enhancement of the cooperation and communication between the stakeholders, relevant authorities, lawyers, academics, journalists and civil society organizations involved in the Action.