The Council of Europe (CoE) Committee of Ministers has “warned” in a report that by failing to comply with the decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the case of human defender and philanthropist Osman Kavala, Turkey has led to a significant complication in the system of the European Convention on Human Rights, Euronews Turkish has said.
In the report released by the CoE on Thursday, it was stressed that the full compliance of members states with ECHR decisions was mandatory and essential for the credibility of the system and the CoE.
Human rights defender Kavala has been incarcerated in Turkey since 2017, and faced court on separate charges of “attempting to overthrow the Government by force” in the context of 2013 Gezi Park protests, of “attempting to overthrow the constitutional order” in the context of a failed coup attempt in July 2016, and of “military or political espionage”.
The ECHR ruled in December 2019 that the European Convention on Human Rights was violated in the Kavala case, and called for his immediate release.
However, Ankara has refused to comply with the ECHR’s ruling for more than four years now.
The Council of Europe decided to apply infringement procedure against Turkey in early 2022, but it has seemingly yet to result in any meaningful way.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has claimed that the Kavala case, along with that of Selahattin Demirtaş, has been unjustly politicised in Europe, leading to inevitable political reactions within Turkey. The legal team representing Kavala countered the remarks of Fidan, arguing that Turkey should adhere to international legal obligations, irrespective of perceived politicisation.