European Court Condemns Turkey's Judiciary Over Kavala Conviction
ECHR criticizes Turkey's courts over Osman Kavala's life sentence, citing systemic problems and urging his release.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has sharply criticized Turkey's judiciary over the imprisonment of prominent philanthropist Osman Kavala, describing the case as evidence of a "systemic problem" in the country's legal system. In a ruling on Tuesday, the court said the detention and prosecution of political opponents, human-rights defenders, and journalists had become a marked feature of the Turkish judiciary.
Kavala, 68, founder of a nonprofit organization promoting peace and dialogue, was sentenced to life in prison without parole in 2022. The charges were linked to the 2013 anti-government protests and the 2016 coup attempt. Human-rights advocates and opposition groups have long accused President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government of using the courts to silence critics and rivals.
The ECHR reiterated its earlier call for Kavala's release, first made in 2019, and stated that his conviction should be regarded as "null and void." The court found that Turkey had violated several of Kavala's fundamental rights, and that the violations revealed structural shortcomings affecting the independence and impartiality of the judiciary. These shortcomings, the court said, were likely to facilitate direct or indirect influence by the executive branch on judicial decisions, particularly in politically sensitive cases.
Turkey's government maintains that its justice system is impartial and independent. President Erdogan has previously dismissed the ECHR's rulings, saying Turkey would not "recognize those who do not recognize our courts."
Kavala was first detained in 2017 on accusations of financing the 2013 protests. He was acquitted in 2020 but was immediately rearrested on charges related to the 2016 coup attempt. His acquittal was later overturned, and the cases were merged, leading to his life sentence in April 2022.
The case caused a diplomatic crisis in 2021 when Erdogan threatened to declare 10 foreign ambassadors, including those from the U.S., France, and Germany, persona non grata after they called for Kavala's release.