‘Lawyers are in no way being targeted’ (statement)

Tunis: The public prosecutor's office at the Tunis Court of Appeal has said "lawyers are not being targeted in any way", contrary to reports on social media. In a statement to TAP news agency on Monday, the spokesman for the Court of Appeal, Habib Torkhani, said that "some lawyers are currently appearing before the courts for criminal offences or following complaints against them. These complaints have nothing to do with the exercise of their profession," he added. He stressed the supremacy of the law and the 'concern to ensure the strict application of the law to all without distinction.' Torkhani pointed out that the court is in constant contact with the structures of the profession and works in coordination with the Ministry of Justice to facilitate the work of lawyers and alleviate any difficulties related to the exercise of their function within the framework of the law. The Bar Association stressed in a statement last Friday that "lawyers are being targeted without any respect for procedural guarant ees." It denounced "pressure" on lawyers in the exercise of their profession, which is likely to "undermine the rights of the defence". Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse