The Human Rights Committee is pleased to announce that Mr Akinci was released from prison on 30 December 2017 and that the question of his deportation to Turkey has been suspended until his request for asylum has been decided. In addition no criminal charges have been laid against him. We believe that the Committee’s intervention was influential in this regard.

2 January 2018
The Chairman

Mr Akinci is currently held in detention in Greece, facing imminent deportation to Turkey, where he would likely be prosecuted for adversion, seemingly and if so, in violation of essential principles of international and European law, as a result of his fulfilling his professional duties by defending many persons accused of supporting Fetullah Gülen and thus of supporting the attempted coup against the President of Turkey of 15 July 2016.

The ECBA Human Rights Committee has written on 29 December 2017 to the the Greek authorities to express its concern, and urging the authorities not to deport Mr. Akinci.

Further details are set out in the letters below .

Letter to the Minister of Justice, Transparency and Human Rights, Mr Stavros Kontonis

Letter to the Minister of Public Order and Citizen's Protection, Mr Nikolaos Toskas