The Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA) and the Batman Bar Association recently held a workshop for lawyers on the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). The workshop was attended by jurists Levent Yalçın, Dr. Atilla Nalbant, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ümit Kılınç and Dr. Rıza Türmen were among the speakers, sharing valuable information on the ECHR's Rules of Procedure, current practices, and the admissibility of individual applications.
Batman Bar Association executives and many lawyers attended the workshop held at Batman Bar Association Tahir Elçi Conference Hall on Saturday, September 23. In his speech, Batman Bar Association President Erkan Şenses stated that this workshop is essential for lawyers' applications to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and that in recent years, the ECtHR has been strictly applying Article 47 of its Rules of Procedure.
Türmen: You can write Turkey's human rights history with the ECtHR's judgment
The opening speech was given via video conference by Dr. Rıza Türmen, a former judge of the ECtHR. Türmen stated that when the rule of law is disregarded in society, people lose faith in the law, and their fundamental rights and freedoms are left vulnerable. He emphasized that the Court of Human Rights is the only reliable safeguard for individuals to exercise their rights and freedoms. Türmen went on to elaborate further in his speech.
"In Turkey, many political, economic, and social issues have been brought to the European Court of Human Rights through various cases. If you were to write a history of human rights in Turkey, it could be based on the judgments made by the Court. The decisions made by the ECtHR are crucial, especially for Turkey, and it is crucial to file cases there. Lawyers play a significant role in this process as they need to understand how to file a case properly for the system to work effectively. Therefore, the seminar is highly valuable for lawyers to gain this knowledge."
Ok: Mistakes are made because the ECHR's Rules of Procedure are constantly being renewed
Attorney Veysel Ok, the MLSA Co-Director, highlighted their long-standing efforts to enhance lawyers' legal education. He explained that they chose to organize a workshop in Batman due to the city's high incidence of rights violations. Ok acknowledged that mistakes are often made concerning Article 47 of the ECHR's Rules of Procedure, a continually evolving area. Thus, he, along with colleagues from the Court, came to the city to gain a better understanding of the reasons for direct rejection and mistakes. The ultimate aim is to improve the application process and achieve tremendous success.
Yalçın: 2250 of 9 thousand applications received administrative rejections
During the workshop's first session, titled 'Making a Valid Application under Article 47 of the Rules of Procedure of the ECtHR,' Levent Yalçın from the ECtHR Registry gave a presentation to attendees. Yalçın acknowledged that the ECtHR had received numerous complaints about being "formalistic" and "rigid" in their administrative refusal decisions towards individual applications. However, he clarified that the Court considers the country's circumstances and relaxes the application conditions accordingly. Yalçın pointed out that in 2023, the ECtHR had rejected 25 percent of the 9,000 applications from Turkey, which is a significant number.
