“The Courts of Conscience”, which was established by various NGOs working in the field of law and human rights, held a press conference on Wednesday, June 27. Journalist Abdurrahman Dilipak, atty. Attorney Kaya Kartal (MAZLUMDER), Attorney Gülden Sönmez (İHH), Mehmet Sarı, the president of Association of Lawyers, Necati Ceylan, the president of International Lawyers’ Union, Ahmet Akcan (Association of Constitutional Lawyers), Ahmet Ercan Tellioğlu (Association of Legal Studies), Cihangir İşbilir (The Rabia Platform) and Cihat Gökdemir (The Center for International Law) attended and presented their opinions.
The Courts of Conscience have been established by the union of MAZLUMDER, İHH, Association of Lawyers, International Lawyers’ Union, Association of Constitutional Lawyers, Association of Legal Studies, Rabia Platform, Center for International Law, Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa. The purpose was to ascertain, judge, and draw attention to the violation of rights, attacks and interventions mainly against Muslims of the world, and also to forge public opinion at the national and international level. The Courts will primarily judge Egyptian coup leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The joint declaration which was read in the press conference included these: “The silence of the “apostles of democracy” in the face of the coup in Egypt revealed the true face of this group once again. The entire world, notably the states claiming to be supporters of democracy, is committing “crime of silence”. Today, the Islamic world is under attack. What started as a war on terror became a war on the so-called Islamic terrorism. However, these attacks, which are now direct as opposed to the ones in the past, are directed towards Islam and Muslims. We, as lawyers, declare that we will fight on all platforms against this covert war on Muslims, especially against the Egyptian coup and death penalties which will remain a black mark in the history of humanity. We will not take part in “the crime of silence” committed by those claiming to be civilized. We are establishing the “The Courts of Conscience” as the first corporate step of our fight.”
“The Courts of Conscience” will organize symposiums and make documentaries. It will also broadcast in Turkish, English, Arabic and French on their websites, vicdanmahkemeleri.com and consciencetribunal.com. The websites will provide current news on violations of right and reports from around the world. The trials of the “The Courts of Conscience” will be broadcasted online as well.