Les droits de l'Homme et la défense de la Défense | PHILIPPINES

2024 International Fair Trial Day and Ebru Timtik Award - Philippines Edition - Event Report

On 14 June 2024, around 300 legal professionals, bar association representatives, academics, criminal  justice experts, human rights advocates and journalists from around the world gathered online and in  person in Manila, the Philippines to participate in the 2024 International Fair Trial Day and Ebru Timtik  Award at the University of the Philippines College of Law.

International Fair Trial Day (IFTD) was established in 2021 by more than 100 legal associations across the  world, to be observed every year on 14 June. It serves as an opportunity to raise awareness of the plight of  those in countries where fair trial principles are not being respected. The right to a fair trial has long been  recognised by the international community as an absolute right. Without a fair trial, every individual risks  becoming the victim of a miscarriage of justice, either as an innocent suspect wrongly convicted or as a  victim unable to secure justice for a wrong perpetrated against them.

On IFTD, the Ebru Timtik Award is granted to individuals or organisations that have demonstrated  outstanding commitment and sacrifice in upholding fundamental values related to the right to a fair trial.  The award is named after a lawyer from Turkey who died in August 2020 following a 238-day hunger strike  in protest against the fair trial rights violations in her country, which Ebru Timtik experienced first-hand  both as a lawyer and as an accused.

Each year, the IFTD highlights the barriers to a fair trial in a specific country, with a focus on solutions.  In 2024, the Philippines was chosen due to persistent reports of serious and widespread fair trial rights  violations. Grave flaws in the justice system prevail, including a failure to observe due process guarantees,  a lack of independence of the judiciary and corruption. Against this background, lawyers, judges,  prosecutors, journalists and human rights defenders face a range of risks including threats, arbitrary arrest  and detention, torture and enforced disappearance. Some have even been killed. A climate of impunity,  notably with ineffective and delayed investigations, ensures there is a lack of accountability for these  violations. 

In 2024, the Ebru Timtik Award was awarded to the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers, in the  Philippines, for its outstanding legal services and advocacy in defence of access to justice and fair trial  rights for all in the Philippines (see below for more details). [1]

The full programme and recording of the conference are available to view online. [2]

This report summarises the key issues raised by panellists during the 2024 IFTD conference. They are  presented under core themes that emerged during the discussions. The insights shared in this document  reflect the personal opinions of the panellists based on their individual knowledge and experience. It is  important to note that the perspectives of each speaker may not necessarily align with the official views of  the endorsing institutions or other panellists.

Information presented in this report is current as of 14 June 2024. Since that date, some relevant events  may have transpired that are not accounted for in the report. These subsequent developments may impact  the context and understanding of some of the subject matter.

The Organising Committee

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[1] Announcement of the Ebru Timtik Award 2024
[2] See the IFTD programme and watch the recording of the IFTD  Conference and Ebru Timtik Award Ceremony here and here