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UNHCR and Union of Turkish Bar Associations signs a memorandum of understanding

UNHCR and Union of Turkish Bar Associations signs a memorandum of understanding

20 June 2016 Also available in:

Story, June 20, 2016

20 June 2016, ANKARA - The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Union of Turkish Bar Associations sign today a memorandum of understanding (MoU), formalising a long standing cooperation between UNHCR and the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, with the aim of further collaborating to provide legal assistance to asylum seekers and refugees in Turkey.

“Today’s MoU, signed on World’s Refugee Day, represents an important step in years-long fruitful cooperation between UNHCR and the Union of Turkish Bar Associations. Legal assistance is vital for refugees and lawyers play a key role in helping them. UNHCR looks forward to complementing the efforts of the Union in this field. “ said Paolo Artini, UNHCR Deputy Representative in Turkey.

Through this MOU, technical support will be provided in the field of international protection. This will be achieved through delivery of events including training workshops, seminars, and roundtable consultations as well as sharing of experience and good practices followed in the other countries. Information sharing mechanisms will also be developed to contribute to advancing efficient delivery of legal aid services by Bar Associations. These activities will jointly be held to promote strenghtening of the legal framework and implementation of existing legislation.

“The signing of such a MoU today, on the World’s Refugee Day, is very significant especially for our country which is currently hosting the highest number of refugees worldwide. An important step is taken through this MoU with regard to the cooperation between our Union and the UNHCR which will also contribute to our other efforts and activities in the field of refugees such as our “Support to the Improvement of Legal Aid Practices for Access to Justice for All in Turkey (SILA) Project” that has a component to assure the effective access to justice of the Syrian population in our country, our Refugee Rights Working Group established under the UTBA Human Rights Centre and the Human Rights education for Legal Professionals (HELP) Programme which recently started a new module on ECHR and Asylum.”, said Prof. Dr. Metin Feyzioğlu, Esq. the President of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations.

With some 2.7 million registered refugees from Syria by Turkish authorities, in addition to some 270.000 registered refugees and asylum seekers from over 75 nationalities by UNHCR, Turkey currently hosts the largest number of refugees worldwide. UNHCR has been working in close support of the Turkish authorities since the beginning of the Syria crisis in 2011, providing humanitarian aid to refugees in camps and in urban areas.

For more information:

UNHCR, Ms. Selin Ünal, Mobile: +90.530.2827862 Email: [email protected]
Union of Turkish Bar Associations, Ms. Özge Şener Mobile: +90 533.033.45.43 Email: [email protected]