The Special Representative of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees (SRSG), Leyla Kayacık, has taken part in the opening of a roundtable meeting on the “Protection of Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Migrants under the European Convention on Human Rights” in Ankara.

The roundtable, on 3 and 4 November, was organised by the Council of Europe and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in co-operation with the Justice Academy of Türkiye. It gathered over 70 (candidate) judges and prosecutors of the Justice Academy and various judicial institutions across the country, as well as lawyers from the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). 

In her opening remarks, the SRSG underlined that supporting member states in addressing migration-related challenges, in line with the European Convention on Human Rights and the standards set by the Council of Europe is at the heart of her mandate. 

The two-day event was aimed at increasing participants’ knowledge of the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, in particular on the admission to the territory, procedural safeguards against deportation and administrative detention. 

During her visit to Ankara, the Special Representative had meetings with Turkish officials, including Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Director for EU Affairs, Mehmet Kemal Bozay, Deputy Minister of Family and Social Services, Leman Yenigün and Head of the Presidency of Migration Management, Atilla Toros.