Former Turkish judge Yavuz Aydin told in an interview last May that most of Turkey’s purged judges and prosecutors were dismissed because they stood their ground, that Turkey’s democratic decline may be irreversible, and that the Turkish government, not the pandemic, will be to blame for any covid-19 deaths among prison inmates in the days ahead.
The Turkish judge purged by President Erdogan now living in exile, addressed the 12th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy (video) and declared, among other facts, about the Turkish coup events and subsequent purge:
“Even before this coup attempt was done, the High Council met to suspend 3000 judges, and they did it in just two hours – completed the investigation, made the decision.”
“They issued an arrest warrant for 2800 judges and prosecutors, including myself.”
“I went to bed as a judge and woke up as a terrorist.”
He also expanded on the targeting of judges and lawyers:
“First you need to attack the lawyers and judges. Then the media, then others. And it happened this way in Turkey.”
“First they came for us. First they came for the judges.”
“They were banned from being employed, so there was no other option but leaving Turkey.”
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