Saadet Yüksel

Saadet Yüksel (born 7 December 1983) is a Turkish judge at the European Court of Human Rights

Saadet Yüksel
Judge at the European Court for Human Rights
Assumed office
July 2019
Preceded byAyşe Işıl Karakaş
Personal details
Born (1983-12-07) 7 December 1983
Istanbul, Turkey
Alma materIstanbul University
OccupationLawyer, lecturer

Education

Yüksel entered the faculty of Law of the Istanbul University in September 2000, where she obtained a Bachelor of Laws in 2004 and a Master of European Laws in 2006.[1] Yüksel is a member of the Istanbul Bar Association and worked in Turkey from 2005 onwards as a lawyer, including on human rights issues.[1] In 2011, Yüksel obtained an additional Master of Laws from the Harvard Law School.[1] She then returned to Turkey where she obtained a Ph.D at the Istanbul University in 2012.[1]

Professional career

Following she worked as a lecturer at Istanbul University, where she became associate professor of constitutional law in 2016. In 2017 she took over a chair for constitutional law. During her career she has been a visiting lecturer at Harvard,[2] the Koç University and the Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar.[3]

In April 2019, Yüksel was elected judge at the European Court of Human Rights by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) after having been put forward as one of the three candidates by the Turkish Government,[1] replacing Ayşe Işıl Karakaş.[3] Her tenure as a judge of the ECtHR, which is expected to last until 2028 began in July 2019.[4]

Controversies

She accompanied Róbert Ragnar Spanó on his trip to Turkey in September 2020.[5] During his stay in Turkey, Spano received an honorary doctorate by the Istanbul University, which drew criticism by Turkish academics like Mehmet Altan[6] and politicians of the Peoples' Democratic Party.[7] Following Yüksel’s appointment, human rights observers expressed concern over her impartiality given the close relations between Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the judge. Not only was her brother Cüneyt Yüksel a former AKP lawmaker and deputy chairman, but Yüksel herself was affiliated with conservative foundations supported by the Erdoğan government. She was also an assistant to and student of the late Prof. Dr. Burhan Kuzu, an advisor to President Erdoğan.[8]

Personal life

Her brother is Cüneyt Yüksel, a former member of parliament of the Justice and Development Party[8] and a professor at the Istanbul University.[9]

References
  1. "PACE - Doc. 14840 (2019) - Election of Judges to the European Court of Human Rights List and curricula vitae of candidates submitted by the Government of Turkey". assembly.coe.int. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  2. "The Clash Between Free Exercise of Religion and Laicism Within the Turkish Legal System". cmes.fas.harvard.edu. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  3. "Saadet Yüksel Elected as ECtHR Judge". Bianet. 10 April 2020.
  4. "Ms. Saadet Yüksel, recently-appointed Turkish justice of the ECHR, has started her office | Anayasa Mahkemesi". www.anayasa.gov.tr. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  5. "Official visit of President Robert Spano in Turkey". European Court of Human Rights.
  6. "Türkei: Kontroverse um Auszeichnung von Ehrendoktorwürde". BR24 (in German). 2020-09-03. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  7. "HDP co-chair urges ECHR head to reconsider decision to receive honorary doctorate from Istanbul University". www.duvarenglish.com. 9 March 2020. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  8. Bozkurt, Abdullah (11 April 2019). "Erdoğan manages to install his choice as new European Court of Human Rights judge". Nordic Monitor. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  9. "Law on the Bosphorus VII International Summer school". Summerschoolsineurope.eu. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
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