Council of Europe to start proceedings against Turkey if philanthropist not freed

By Ali Kucukgocmen

ISTANBUL (Reuters) -The Council of Europe said on Friday it would begin infringement proceedings against member state Turkey in November if philanthropist Osman Kavala is not released from prison in accordance with a European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruling.

Osman Kavala, a businessman, has been in jail in Turkey without conviction for nearly four years, charged with financing nationwide protests in 2013 and for his alleged involvement in an attempted coup in 2016.

The ECHR said in 2019 that Kavala's detention was political, calling for his immediate release. Turkey has not complied with the ruling.

The Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers, which oversees the implementation of ECHR's decisions, has repeatedly called on Turkey to release Kavala in line with the court's ruling.

Following this week's meeting, the committee said it would vote at its next meeting at the end of November on whether to formally notify Turkey that it intends to begin the infringement procedure if Kavala is not released before then.

The next step in the process would involve referring to the ECHR the question of whether Turkey has violated the European Convention on Human Rights by not abiding by the court's final judgment.

If the court finds a violation, the Committee of Ministers can then begin considering which measures should be taken. Turkey's membership or voting rights at the CoE could be suspended at the end of the proceedings.

The ECHR delivered its first judgment in infringement proceedings in 2019, as part of an earlier ruling that called on Azerbaijan for the release of a politician.

"The Committee of Ministers of the CoE (is) very clear in its latest Osman Kavala decision: free him immediately or face infringement proceedings," said Milena Buyum, Turkey campaigner for Amnesty International.

DEMIRTAS

Separately, the Committee of Ministers also reviewed the case of Selahattin Demirtas, former head of Turkey's pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), who has been jailed for nearly five years.

The ECHR ruled earlier this year that Demirtas was detained without evidence to support reasonable suspicion, and that his detention aimed to limit freedom of political debate.

The committee said on Thursday that Demirtas should be released, a previous ruling against should be quashed and an ongoing case against him should be dropped.

(Reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen; Editing by Ece Toksabay and Angus MacSwan)