More than 200 lawyers from eight Bar Associations across Türkiye, including İstanbul, İzmir, Adana, Kahramanmaraş, Mardin, Bursa, Mersin, and Ankara, have enhanced their expertise in immigration detention standards.  Through a series of cascade training sessions, they gained insights into European and international human rights principles, particularly focusing on the right to liberty and immigration detention. These sessions equipped legal professionals with essential knowledge and skills to uphold human rights standards in their daily practice.

Organised under the European Union and Council of Europe joint action “Strengthening the human rights protection in the context of migration in Türkiye” in cooperation with the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, the trainings were held between March and October 2024.

These training sessions were conducted by experienced lawyers and mentors who had previously been trained under the same joint action. They addressed a broad range of topics, including the lawfulness of detention, protection against arbitrariness, alternatives to immigration detention, and restrictions on freedom of movement. Participants also analysed human rights standards related to detention conditions, procedural safeguards, monitoring mechanisms, specific guarantees for the protection of vulnerable persons and the principle of non-refoulement.  The training sessions focused on the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights and the Turkish Constitutional Court. Participants actively engaged in discussions on domestic legislation and practices, sharing their field experiences to enrich the learning process.

Feedback from participants was positive, highlighting the practical benefits and the deeper understanding gained from the trainings. This initiative marks a pivotal step in promoting the right to liberty in the context of migration and ensuring that all practices align with international and European human rights standards.

The action “Strengthening the human rights protection in the context of migration in Türkiye”  is part of the joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”