Erdoğan slams ECtHR over Demirtaş verdict, says it can't replace Turkey's courts

Photo: AA

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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has accused the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) of "double standards" over its ruling for the immediate release of Selahattin Demirtaş, the former co-chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP)

Yesterday (December 22), the ECtHR ruled that the arrest of Demirtaş violated his freedom of expression and right to participate in elections.

Demirtaş has been behind bars since November 2016 and competed in the 2018 presidential election while he was under pre-trial detention.

Speaking to his Justice and Development Party's (AKP) parliamentary group today, Erdoğan claimed that the ECHR can't announce a ruling by replacing Turkey's courts.

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"With taking this decision without internal authorities being exhausted, the European Court of Human Rights performed an exceptional practice," Erdoğan said.

"However, even if we leave the exception aside, the ruling about Selahattin Demirtaş clearly contradicts with the justifications of the decision of the same court on the Batasuna party in Spain," he added.

The court also urged Turkey to take all necessary measures for the release of Demirtaş.

"It is clearly double-standard, and even hypocrisy that the [European] court demands the release of a chief person responsible for an attack brutally killing 39 people between October 6-8, 2014," he said, referring to the "Kobane protest" that claimed the lives of more than 50 people in the Kurdish-majority provinces. The government has accused the HDP of orchestrating the protests.

The ECHR also ruled that Turkey should pay "3,500 Euro in respect of pecuniary damage, 25,000 Euro in respect of non-pecuniary damage and 31,900 Euro in respect of costs and expenses."

In November 2016, Demirtaş along with 12 HDP lawmakers was arrested on terror-related charges.

In September 2018, he was sentenced to four years and eight months in prison after he was convicted of "terrorist propaganda," "terrorist organization leadership" and "inciting people to hatred and hostility".

In November 2018, the European court ordered Demirtaş's release, stating that his detention had been extended on insufficient grounds. However, his imprisonment continued as another court sentenced hi to prison days after the ECtHR ruling. Afterward, both Turkey and Demirtaş applied to the Court's Grand Chamber and a hearing was held on March 18, 2019.

Trial of Selahattin Demirtaş

Selahattin Demirtaş was detained on November 4, 2016. He was arrested and sent to Silivri Prison in İstanbul on the same day. He is still behind bars in Silivri.

All his investigations, except for one, have been combined in a single file. The lawsuit filed at the Ankara 19th Heavy Penal Court has still not been concluded. As his request for release as part of this suit was rejected, his attorneys appealed to the Constitutional Court.

In their application to the Constitutional Court on May 29, 2018, the attorneys requested that his application be reviewed with priority. However, the Court has not yet responded to the application. On June 26, 2018, his case was taken to the ECtHR.

Shortly after this appeal to the ECtHR, the court announced its judgment in his second case. Tried in the case together with former HDP MP Sırrı Süreyya Önder, Selahattin Demirtaş has been sentenced to 4 years, 8 months in prison on the charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" by the İstanbul 26th Heavy Penal Court.

One month later, on October 25, 2018, his verdict of conviction reached the 2nd Penal Chamber of İstanbul Regional Court of Justice, the court of appeal.

On November 17, 2018, the ECtHR announced that it would announce its judgment as to his application on November 20. The court of appeal swiftly reviewed the verdict of conviction of Demirtaş and started discussing it on November 19.

On November 20, 2018, the ECtHR concluded that Demirtaş was "arrested with political motivations" and ruled for his release.

The Ankara 19th Heavy Penal Court rejected his request for release on November 30, 2018, indicating that "his arrest was a moderate measure".

On December 4, 2018, the 2nd Penal Chamber of İstanbul Regional Court of Justice upheld his verdict of conviction. With this verdict, Demirtaş became an arrested convict.

The attorneys of Demirtaş appealed again to the ECtHR on February 19, 2019, and requested that the issues not discussed, found inadmissible and not regarded as violation right be reviewed again.

The government also appealed against the ECtHR verdict on Demirtaş. In its petition, the government also requested that the ECtHR review its ruling of right violation again. That being the case, the case of Demirtaş has been taken to the ECtHR Grand Chamber, which announced that it would discuss the application on September 18, 2019.

In his hearing at the Ankara 19th Heavy Penal Court on September 2, the court board has ruled that Demirtaş shall be released.

Demirtaş has not been released.

(DŞ/VK)