The 6^th Congress of the Association of Asian Constitutional Courts and Equivalent Institutions (AACC) was hosted by the Constitutional Court of the Kingdom of Thailand in Bangkok, on 17-21 September 2024. President of the Turkish Constitutional Court Mr. Kadir Özkaya, Justice Mr. İrfan Fidan, Secretary General Mr. Murat Azaklı, and Deputy Secretary General Mr. Mücahit Aydın attended the Congress in representation of the Turkish Constitutional Court.

The Congress started with the Board of Members Meeting. The meeting proceeded with the discussions on the cooperation between the AACC and certain international organisations and conferences, the financial matters, as well as the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the AACC and the Ibero-American Conference on Constitutional Justice. In this regard, President of the Constitutional Court Mr. Kadir Özkaya, underlining the significance of the cooperation between these organisations and conferences, stated that the Turkish Constitutional Court had participated in the Congress of the Conference of European Constitutional Courts, in its capacity as a member, which was held in Moldova. President Özkaya added that at the Congress the Albanian Constitutional Court, also supported by the Turkish Constitutional Court, was elected as the term president of the European Conference. President Özkaya also expressed that the Turkish Constitutional Court is to participate in the 7^th Congress of the Conference of Constitutional Jurisdictions of Africa, to be held in Zimbabwe, in its capacity as an observer.

During the second session of the meeting, the activity report regarding the AACC presidency of the Constitutional Court of the Kingdom of Thailand and the reports issued by the Permanent Secretariats were discussed. In this sense, on behalf of the Permanent Secretariat of the Center for Training and Human Resources Development of the AACC, the Turkish Constitutional Court Secretary General Mr. Murat Azaklı, pointing out the annual organisation of Summer School programs, indicated that the theme of the 12^th Summer School program to be held this year would be “Use of Information Technologies and Artificial Intelligence in the Higher Judiciary”. He also presented a report on the activities of the Turkish Constitutional Court within the AACC. In the afternoon of the same day, the representatives attending the 6^th Congress of the AACC were received by the Representative of H.M. the King of the Kingdom of Thailand.

On the second day of the meeting, a symposium was held in three sessions. In the first session, President Özkaya delivered a presentation on “The Role of Constitutional Courts and Equivalent Institutions in Strengthening Constitutional Justice within the Context of Sustainable Society”.

During the Board of Members Meeting held at the end of the symposium, the final document “Bangkok Declaration”, which is the output of the 6^th Congress of the AACC, and the next term presidency of the AACC were discussed.

The Members attending the Congress unanimously agreed to the holding of the term presidency for the years of 2025-2027 by the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and the term presidency for the years of 2027-2029 by the Supreme Court of the Philippines.

President Özkaya, taking the floor during the discussions for the adoption of the Declaration, noted that the tragedy taking place in territories of Palestine, a member of the AACC, cannot be overlooked. President Özkaya pointed to the violations of the right to life, the most fundamental right, and other basic rights, as well as to the ongoing acts of violence causing death of many innocent people, particularly women and children. In this regard, President Özkaya explained the necessity for the immediate cessation of these violations that had reached the level of massacre. Emphasising the dire need for an immediate ceasefire in compliance with the United Nations Security Council Resolution no. 2735 adopted at its meeting held on 10 June 2024, President Özkaya also called for unhindered access to Gaza to allow for the delivery of humanitarian aid, as well as for the adoption of a two-state solution in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions.

The “Bangkok Declaration”, which marked the conclusion of the negotiations, was announced on 19 September 2024. Through support and initiatives of the Turkish Constitutional Court, the Declaration laid emphasis on the grave violations of human rights, including in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and voiced the common commitment of the signatories to act in unity and solidarity for the purposes of maintaining sustainable justice, peace, and security across the world and removing obstacles to the rights and freedoms of individuals, especially the right to life.

The Declaration also stressed the significance of law and constitutional justice for a sustainable society. The signatories thereby extended their best wishes for the success of the 29^th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to be hosted by Azerbaijan, and also recognised the necessity to combat climate change, thus continuing to promote global sustainability. The Declaration called for a just and equitable world, referring to the supremacy of the constitution, the separation of powers, the protection of fundamental rights, and the judicial independence.

The delegation of the Turkish Constitutional Court also paid a visit to the Turkish Embassy in Bangkok where they met with Ambassador Ms. Serap Ersoy.

Click for the Bangkok Declaration.