Istanbul’s 13th High Criminal Court rejected the application for a retrial of Osman Kavala.
The court did not implement the ECtHR Grand Chamber’s ruling that Kavala’s rights had been violated.
According to a report by Alican Uludağ of DW Turkish, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, in its opinion submitted at the court’s request, argued that the Constitutional Court had not yet issued its ruling concerning Kavala and that domestic legal remedies had not been exhausted. It therefore called for the application to be rejected.
“Interference in the judicial authority of a sovereign state”
The court’s ruling emphasized that domestic legal remedies must be exhausted before an application is made to the ECtHR. The reasoning stated that, according to generally accepted principles of international law, applicants must first apply to national judicial authorities and make use of the available legal remedies. The ruling stated: “Accepting the contrary would exceed the authority of an international court and constitute interference in a sovereign state’s independent exercise of its judicial authority.”
The ruling also noted that, as the ECtHR has emphasized in numerous judgments, it is not a court of appeal. It stated: “It is clear that the admissibility of evidence and how evidence is assessed fall within the jurisdiction of domestic law and national courts. Were the contrary to be accepted, the Court would be acting as a court of first instance or an appellate court and disregarding the limits placed on its role.”
What happened?
Osman Kavala has been detained at Silivri Prison since November 1, 2017. Two grounds were cited for his detention: “attempting to overthrow the government” in connection with the Gezi protests and “attempting to overthrow the constitutional order” in connection with the July 15 coup attempt.
Human rights defender and civil society representative Osman Kavala has been deprived of his liberty unjustly for nine years, since November 2017.
ECtHR rulings not being implemented
On August 25, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Osman Kavala’s continued detention was unlawful and that his rights to a fair trial, freedom of expression, and freedom of association had been violated.
The Court also ruled that the aggravated life sentence imposed on Kavala constituted inhuman and degrading treatment, and that Turkish authorities had acted in bad faith by keeping him in prison unlawfully. The Court ordered that Osman Kavala be released as soon as possible.
This is the third decision of violation that the ECtHR has issued pertaining to Kavala’s case since 2019.
