European Court of Human Rights on legal detention: Turkey must pay compensation

After the attempted coup, hundreds of lawyers, among others, were arrested in Turkey – arbitrarily, the European Court of Human Rights has now ruled. So you are entitled to compensation.

The European Court of Human Rights has condemned Turkey for the “arbitrary” detention of more than 400 Turkish judges and prosecutors after the failed coup attempt in July 2016. The judges in Strasbourg unanimously decided that the pre-trial detention of a total of 427 judicial representatives was “unlawful” and ordered Ankara to pay 5,000 Euros as compensation for each person involved.

Judges and prosecutors, like thousands of their colleagues, were arrested after the attempted coup five years ago in Turkey on suspicion of belonging to the Gülen movement. The government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accuses the movement of Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen of systematically infiltrating the army, police and judiciary in order to seize power in the country.

rule again

The government in Ankara has already been condemned several times by the European Court of Human Rights for its suppression of opposition members, journalists and officials. However, Erdogan has not been tolerant, and thus is regularly criticized by partner countries.

In the dispute over the illegal detention of human rights activist and cultural patron Osman Kavala, according to the European Court of Human Rights, Erdogan threatened at the end of October to expel ten ambassadors of the partners – including those of Germany and the United States. Erdogan finally gave in after ambassadors “retracted” his testimony.