Council of Europe to start infringement proceedings against Turkey if philantropist not released
17/09/2021 14:00
By Ali Kucukgocmen
ISTANBUL, Sept 17 (Reuters) - The Council of Europe said on
Friday it would begin infringement proceedings against member
state Turkey in November if philanthropist Osman Kavala is not
released from prison in accordance with a European Court of
Human Rights (ECHR) ruling.
Osman Kavala, a businessman, has been in jail in Turkey
without conviction for nearly four years, charged with financing
nationwide protests in 2013 and for his alleged involvement in
an attempted coup in 2016. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N2N8139 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N2L335L
The ECHR said in 2019 that Kavala's detention was political,
calling for his immediate release. Turkey has not complied with
the ruling.
The Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers, which
oversees the implementation of ECHR's decisions, has repeatedly
called on Turkey to release Kavala in line with the court's
ruling.
Following this week's meeting, the committee said it would
notify Turkey ahead of a meeting at the end of November that it
would begin infringement processes if Kavala is not released
before then.
The first step in the infringement process involves
referring to the ECHR the question of whether Turkey has abided
by the court's judgment.
If the court finds a violation, the Committee of Ministers
can then begin considering which measures should be taken.
Turkey's membership or voting rights at the CoE could be
suspended at the end of the proceedings
The ECHR delivered its first judgment in infringement
proceedings in 2019, as part of an earlier ruling that called on
Azerbaijan for the release of a politician.
"Govt. of Turkey on formal notice for persistent political
persecution: Free Osman Kavala or face shame of being referred
back to ECHR for refusing to abide by its ruling," said Nils
Muiznieks, Europe Regional Director at Amnesty International.
"Ball firmly in Turkey's court, high time to do the right
thing & release him immediately," he said on Twitter.
DEMIRTAS
Separately, the Committee of Ministers also reviewed the
case of Selahattin Demirtas, former head of Turkey's pro-Kurdish
Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), who has been jailed for nearly
five years. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2MJ0LG
The ECHR ruled earlier this year that Demirtas was detained
without evidence to support reasonable suspicion, and that his
detention aimed to limit freedom of political debate.
The committee said on Thursday that Demirtas should be
released, a previous ruling against should be quashed and an
ongoing case against him should be dropped.
"The Committee of Ministers couldnt be clearer in its
Demirtas decision," Amnesty's Muiznieks said.
"Turkey must free Selahattin Demirtas immediately."
(Reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen; Editing by Ece Toksabay and
Angus MacSwan)
((ali.kucukgocmen@thomsonreuters.com , @alikucukgocmen;
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