- The Second Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has referred the case to the Court’s most authoritative body, the Grand Chamber, citing the significance of the case.
- According to experts, if the Grand Chamber finds a violation, the justifications put forward by Turkey to defend Kavala’s continued imprisonment will lose their validity.
Businessperson and human rights defender Osman Kavala has been imprisoned since 2017 on accusations that he orchestrated the Gezi Protests to attempt to overthrow the government, despite a violation ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). Kavala was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment, and the sentence was finalized in 2023 when the 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation upheld the verdict. A second application filed by Kavala against the ruling was communicated to Turkey in 2024. In an announcement made this week, the Court stated that the Second Chamber, which had been examining the file, had recused itself and referred the case to the Grand Chamber to render a final decision.
In Kavala’s first application, which was decided in 2019, the ECtHR ruled that Osman Kavala’s arrest violated, first and foremost, the right to liberty and security, as well as freedom of expression and freedom of assembly. The Court also stated that the detention had been carried out for political motives, thereby also finding a violation of Article 18 of the Convention, known as the prohibition of misuse of rights. The Court stated that in order for the ruling to be implemented, Kavala must be released, and transmitted the case to the Committee of Ministers for supervision of the implementation.
After Turkish courts rejected Kavala’s release requests despite the ECtHR’s ruling, the Committee of Ministers initiated the infringement procedure and referred the application to the Grand Chamber. The Grand Chamber ruled that by not releasing Osman Kavala, Turkey had violated its obligation to implement the European Convention on Human Rights. Despite this Grand Chamber ruling, Osman Kavala was not released. After the 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation upheld the aggravated life sentence in September 2023, Kavala’s detention status turned into a conviction.
Following the finalization of the conviction, Osman Kavala reapplied to the ECtHR, claiming that his right to a fair trial, his freedom of expression, and his freedom of assembly had been violated. On March 21, 2024, the ECtHR communicated the application to Turkey and requested a defense from Turkey.
The seven-judge Second Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights, which reviewed Kavala’s application, decided on December 16 to refer the case to the 17-judge Grand Chamber on the grounds that the application related to an important issue regarding the implementation of the Convention. The application will be examined by the Grand Chamber next year.
Chambers consisting of seven judges may refer a case to the Grand Chamber for a final decision if they conclude that the application involves an important issue of legal interpretation. The aim is for the Grand Chamber to establish consistent case law on matters of importance for the implementation of the Convention.
A violation ruling could render Turkey’s defense moot
Legal experts say that if the Grand Chamber also finds a violation in this application, Turkey’s argument that Kavala’s detention has ended will be invalidated. Turkey argues that with the approval of the conviction against Kavala, his status changed from being detained to being convicted, and thus the violation ruling concerning his pretrial detention has been fulfilled.
However, experts state that because the application referred to the Grand Chamber concerns Kavala’s conviction, a violation ruling from the Grand Chamber would also render Turkey’s defense invalid.
What is the procedure from here?
The Grand Chamber is expected to hold a hearing within the coming year. After the hearing, the 17-judge Grand Chamber will render a final judgment on the application. If the Court accepts Kavala’s application, it could pave the way for his retrial and release.
