- The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that there were rights violations in the applications of 2,440 individuals who were convicted of membership in the "FETÖ" organization on the grounds that they used ByLock, an encrypted messaging application.
- Announcing that a large number of applications had been received from public servants who were dismissed by decree laws (KHKs), the Court stated that a special procedure will be applied starting from January 1.
- Referring to the 2023 Grand Chamber judgment in the Yalçınkaya case, the Court ruled that Turkey had violated the principle of “no punishment without law” and the right to a fair trial.
- More than 4,000 similar cases submitted to the ECHR this year are expected to be resolved soon. The Court's jurisprudence is also expected to become clearer following a decision next year in another high-profile case pending before the Grand Chamber, concerning the applicant Yasak.
In its ruling issued today, the European Court of Human Rights reviewed applications submitted against Turkey by 2,440 individuals who were convicted on allegations of membership in the armed terrorist organization FETÖ/PDY (Fetullahist Terrorist Organization/Parallel State Structure) based solely on their alleged use of ByLock, an encrypted messaging app. Referring to the Grand Chamber’s 2023 Yalçınkaya decision, the Court found that convicting individuals solely on the basis of using ByLock violated Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (right to a fair trial) and Article 7 (no punishment without law).
In September, 4,800 applications were communicated to Turkey and are nearing judgment
In September of this year, the Court communicated 4,800 applications to Turkey from individuals who were convicted of armed terrorist organization membership based on alleged ByLock usage. In the communication process, Turkey is invited to submit its observations on the applications, after which the cases move toward judgment. These applications, being similar in nature to the Yalçınkaya case, are also expected to result in findings of rights violations.
ByLock-related applications make up the bulk of the Court’s workload
Experts note that following Russia’s departure from the ECHR system, around 40% of the Court’s total caseload now consists of applications from Turkey. A significant portion of these relate to ByLock and FETÖ membership allegations.
In the Yalçınkaya case, decided in 2023 by the 17-judge Grand Chamber, the Court established a key precedent, ruling that a conviction for terrorist organization membership could not be based solely on ByLock usage.
The Yasak application pending before the Grand Chamber deferred to next year
The Yasak v. Turkey case, referred to the Grand Chamber in 2024, addresses whether a conviction for terrorist organization membership violates the Convention when ByLock usage is combined with additional evidence. A hearing on the Yasak application took place in May of this year, and the Grand Chamber's ruling is expected to be published in 2026.
ECHR to implement special procedure for KHK-dismissal applications
Last week, the Court announced that it had received a large number of applications from public servants who were dismissed from their posts between 2016 and 2018 under decree laws (KHKs). Due to the high volume of such applications, the Court said it will introduce a special procedure starting January 1, requiring a special cover letter to be attached to all new applications submitted after that date.
