The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ordered Turkey to immediately release Osman Kavala, a prominent activist and philanthropist who has been imprisoned since 2017.
Kavala was sentenced to life in prison in 2022 over allegations linked to nationwide protests in 2013 and the failed 2016 coup attempt. He and human rights organisations have consistently argued that the charges were politically motivated.
The ECHR ruled that his continued detention was unlawful and violated his rights to a fair trial, freedom of expression and freedom of association. The court also described his aggravated life sentence as inhuman and degrading treatment.
The court said Kavala’s case highlighted a “systemic problem” in Turkey involving the detention and prosecution of political opponents, human rights defenders and journalists. It also raised concerns about the independence and impartiality of Turkey’s judiciary.
Kavala, 68, became a symbol of the Turkish government’s crackdown on civil society after his arrest in October 2017. He was accused of organising and financing the 2013 Gezi Park protests, which began in Istanbul and spread across the country.
The ECHR had already ordered his release in 2019, describing his detention as arbitrary and politically motivated, but Turkey did not implement the ruling. Kavala was later acquitted in 2020 before being rearrested on new charges related to the failed coup.
In 2022, he was sentenced to life imprisonment, but the latest ECHR ruling declared that conviction null and void.
Amnesty International has called on Turkish authorities to comply with the ruling and release Kavala immediately and unconditionally.
However, Turkey has previously refused to comply with ECHR rulings concerning Kavala, leaving uncertainty over whether Ankara will implement the latest decision. The Council of Europe is expected to review the case at a Committee of Ministers meeting in September.
.jpeg)
_1735284064925.jpg "Zainab ambato gani a so free Download")
0 Comment about the Post: