The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled that Kurdish politician Aysel Tuğluk was detained for political reasons, concluding that her 2016 pre-trial detention was intended to suppress political opposition and limit democratic pluralism.
Tuğluk was among several high-profile pro-Kurdish politicians arrested during a crackdown under the state of emergency following the 2016 coup attempt. She was the deputy co-chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) at the time of her arrest.
The European court ruling addressed Tuğluk’s detention over her role as co-chair of the Democratic Society Congress (DTK), a pro-Kurdish and leftist umbrella platform. The court found that her arrest and 15-month pre-trial detention violated multiple rights under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), including the right to liberty and security, the right to freedom of expression, and the right to be tried within a reasonable time.
Lack of 'reasonable suspicion'
The court emphasized that Turkish authorities failed to present “reasonable suspicion” justifying her detention. It also criticized the domestic courts for using vague justifications such as “the nature of the offense” and “risk of flight” without individualized assessment.
Tuğluk’s speeches and activities within the DTK, the court said, fell within the scope of Article 10 on freedom of expression. It ruled that detaining her for these activities constituted a clear violation of that right.
The ECtHR also determined a violation of Article 18, which prohibits using restrictions on rights for unauthorized purposes. The judgment stated that Tuğluk’s detention served a “hidden agenda” of silencing dissent during the state of emergency declared after the 2016 coup attempt. The court stressed that the state of emergency could not justify such violations.
The ruling ordered Turkey to pay Tuğluk 16,000 euros in non-pecuniary damages and 1,500 euros for legal costs.
Meral Danış Beştaş, co-spokesperson for the Peoples’ Democratic Congress (HDK), commented on the ECtHR ruling, saying: “This decision is a justice ruling not just for one person but for everyone punished for their identity, thoughts, and words.” She also criticized the long delay in justice, saying, “It shows how delayed justice can severely damage a person’s life.”
Background
Tuğluk was arrested in Dec 2016 and sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2018 for “membership in a terrorist organization.” The sentence was upheld on appeal.
Despite being diagnosed with dementia in mid-2021, she remained in prison until her release in Oct 2022, after the Forensic Medicine Institution reported she was unfit for incarceration. The sentence was formally postponed in May 2023 by the Kocaeli Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office due to health reasons.
Human rights organizations had criticized the delay in her release, despite multiple medical reports supporting her condition.
Tuğluk was a founding member of the Democratic Society Party (DTP), a predecessor of the pro-Kurdish political parties which was shut down in 2009 on "terrorism" accusations. She was elected an MP representing Diyarbakır in 2007 from the DTP and from Van in 2011 as a member of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), serving until 2015. She also held roles in several civil society organizations, including the Human Rights Association and the Patriotic Women's Association. (AB/VK)
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