Etiket arşivi: The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)

It’s time for Europe to address Turkey’s dire human rights record

 

Ankara’s administration, a coalition of hard-core Islamists and relentless nationalists led by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is the elephant in the room whose presence is felt by EU members and some countries in the MENA region (AS: Middle-East North Africa). Those countries, once encouraged by Turkey’s growing economy and democratisation prospects, are in shock and unsure of how to address Ankara’s bold violation of international norms.

Looking through the UN Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Turkey, I noticed that many countries had adopted low-key stances in their assessments and in their recommendations about Ankara’s policies. Countries that took a bolder line, such as those in North America or Western Europe, are merely shouting into an echo chamber.

Altogether, Turkey received 450 recommendations as part of the review, highlighting its dire human rights record.

The UPR review is a 5-year process in which a country’s human rights record and respect for rule of law are “X-rayed” and subjected to critiques that it is expected to respond to promptly.

In Turkey’s case, none of the expectations was met. When it was hit with a barrage of criticism in the United Nations’ grand hall in Geneva, the Turkish delegation responded with full defiance and arrogant hostility. It refused to acknowledge any concerns and reverted to its tired pretext of “fighting terrorism.”

The fact that Turkey tops the league of oppressive regimes, keeping more than 55,000 dissidents — which it labels “domestic enemies” — as political prisoners was not seriously discussed nor were the myriad other ways Turkey disregards the rule of law.

The fact that more than 130 journalists and many more intellectuals have been unjustly held in detention seemed not to worry the Turkish delegation, whose chairman, Deputy Foreign Minister Faruk Kaymakci, argued, in a nutshell, that such imprisonments were all about fighting terrorism. No one, especially journalists, he argued, are above the law.

Another issue not brought up in the UPR session but was addressed at side events in which I took part was Turkey’s widespread use of torture which, of course, it categorically denies. However, as documented by Sebnem Korur Fincanci, the president of the Human Rights Foundation in Turkey, torture is being systematically used throughout the country, often against Kurdish and alleged Gulenist prisoners.

Most of the bitter facts are on the record. As pointed out by the International Observatory of Human Rights, Turkey has not come close to upholding its UPR promises.

It stated: “In the period under review, the government has weaponised the legal system and terror legislation to restrict free expression. By means of freedom of expression and freedom of press Turkey now stands far below where it was back in 2010, when the first UPR cycle was compiled.”

I could not help but notice the sense of helplessness in diplomats and Western NGO representatives in my talks with them. Most did not hide the fact that all forms of “friendly ammunition” to persuade Ankara to return to respect for rule of law had nearly run out. Erdogan’s administration is increasingly defiant towards outside criticism as his regime grows into one of the most oppressive in the world.

The day after the UPR session, further confirmation of Turkey’s misconduct landed on their desks. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), in its annual activity report issued January 29, ranked Turkey first in terms of violations of freedom of expression in 2019.

Of the 68 judgments in which the court found violations of freedom of expression under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, 35 were filed by Turkish citizens.

The EHCR report reminded us that Turkey’s intolerance for dissent was becoming a chronic feature of the state: “The country single-handedly committed more violations regarding this issue than the rest of the member states combined throughout 1959-2019, committing 356 of the total 845 violations,” ECHR stated.

It added :In 2019, the ECHR delivered 113 judgments on Turkey, finding at least one violation in 97 of these cases. During the period of 1959-2019, The Court delivered 3,645 judgments for cases coming from Turkey, finding the country at fault in 3,225 of these cases.”

This harsh indictment, combined with Turkey’s expansionist ambitions and militarised foreign policy, shows a need to urgently revise the appeasement policies being pursued in the European Union’s top circles.

One thing is clear: Ostrich patterns from Turkey’s concerned allies, if continued, will not only create a monster but inflict deeper damage on large parts of Turkish society.

 

Prof. Rennan Pekünlü hapse girmesin; Türkiye utanmasın!


Prof. Rennan Pekünlü hapse girmesin; Türkiye utanmasın!
Son Gün!

Dostlar,

12.11.14 günü (3 gün önce) sitemizde paylaşmıştık..
Bu gün bir kez daha yineliyoruz..
İnfaz erteleme 20 Kasım 2014 günü, 3 gün sonra doluyor..

Türkiye’de bütün insanlığı utanca boğan işler yapılıyor..

Dağın başına, İstanbul Çamlıca tepesine dev bir cami (50 bin kişilik!) yapılıyor.

İstanbul BŞB Başkanı bay Topbaş, halkın parasıyla bay RTE’nin konağından
bu camiye özel tunel yapıyor (75 milyon TL!).

Dahası, Boğazın ötesinden, Mecidiyeköy’den Boğazaşırı teleferik ile bu camiye “Müslümanlar” (!?) namaza taşınacaklar!.

İktidardaki “Türkiye Müslümanları” (!?) , tarihte görülmemiş bir şaşaa ve tantana ile meşgulken, siyasal simge yaptıkları adına türban denen 1 m’lik bez parçası yüzünden (“Hımar” Arapça “masa örtüsü” anlamına da geliyor ve Türban’ın Kuran’da yeri yok!)
70 yaşına yakın, erken emekli olmak zorunda bırakılan bir profesör, üstelik işlemediği bir suç yüzünden, mahkemenin en üst sınırdan ceza takdiriyle 2 yıl 1 ay hapis yatacak!

İlahiyat hocaları, hukuk hocaları susacak, basın susacak, vicdan susacak..
Anayasa Mahkemesi türbanın hukuka aykırı olduğu yönündeki önceki içtihadını çiğneyecek, AİHM aylardır susacak, uluslararası kamuoyu susacak, AB susacak..

Yazıklar olsun topuna da ..

Hayır, biz susmuyoruz..
Vicdanımız isyandadır.

Din bu ise biz Müslüman değiliz!

Ve yüce Tanrı’nın artık bu kadarına da izin vermemesi gerek.

Can-ı gönülden niyaz ederiz ki, dine – imana – peygambere – Kuran’a, ahlaka….
her güzel ve doğru şeye aykırı, yoksulun ekmeğini çalan, haram mı haram
bu lanetli akıldışı gidişe bir “duuurrr!” desin, gazabını göstersin artık.

AKP’ye 21 milyon oy yağdıran “necip halkımız” bu gösterişi ve dini siyasete alet eden utanmaz girişimlere onay verecek mi??

Prof. Rennan Pekünlü‘nün yakasını bırakın..
Hemen, derhal, yarın.. 3 gün kaldı..
Bu İslamofaşizme hiç olmazsa bu noktada bir sınır çekin..

Derin acı ve kaygıyla paylaşıyoruz..
İngilizce çağrı aşağıdadır..

Sitede konuya ilişkin epey yazı vardır.. bakılması dileğiyle..

Sevgi ve saygıyla.

Derin acı ve kaygıyla..

16 ve 17.11.2014, Ankara
Ve 20.11.2014 güncellemesi..

Dr. Ahmet SALTIK
www.ahmetsaltik.net

===============================================

Ege Üniversitesi’nde emekli olmak zorunda kalan Prof. Rennan Pekünlü‘ye dönük türban komplosu davasının kararı kesinleşmiş durumda.

portresi
20 Kasım 2014 sonrasında Prof. Pekünlü’nün kesinleşen
2 yıl 1 aylık üst sınırdan cezasının infazına geçilecek.

Bu sitede konu kezlerce ama kezlerce işlendi.
Şu ana dek olumlu sonuç yok..

 

  • AİHM’nin infazın yürütülmesini durduran bir ara kararı ile
    davayı ivedilikle
    ele alması gerekiyor..

Ya da, sonuca etkili yeni kanıtlar nedeniyle yargılamanın yenilenmesi (CMK 311)..

Türkiye’yi utandıran bu yüz kızartıcı tabloyu yaratanları uygarlık tarihi bağışlamayacaktır..

İlgili – yetkili her-kesi ivedilikle bu trajediyi durdurmaya çağırıyoruz.

Değerli meslektaşımız Prof. Dr. Kürşat Yıldız, TÜMÖD İstanbul Şubesi
Yönetim Kurulu adına Başkan olarak aşağıdaki iletiyi gönderdi..

Derin acı ve kaygıyla paylaşıyoruz..

Sevgi ve saygıyla.
12.11.2014, Ankara

Dr. Ahmet SALTIK
www.ahmetsaltik.net

=========================================

Değerli Dostlar,

Ege Üniversitesi emekli öğretim üyesi Prof. Dr. E. Rennan Pekünlü, yürürlükteki
yasa ve hukuk yorumlarını uygulamayı savunmaktan başka bir kabahatı olmadığı halde türban sömürüsünün bir uzantısı olarak 2 yıl 1 ay süreyle hapse mahkum edilmiştir.
İç hukuk yolları tümüyle tükenmiş, infazın durdurulması amacıyla
Avrupa İnsan Hakları Mahkemesi‘ne başvurulmuş, aynı zamanda
yeniden yargılama isteminde bulunulmuştur.
Bu süreçte sonuç alınamazsa Prof. Dr. Rennan Pekünlü’nün 20 Kasım 2014’ü izleyen günlerde cezaevine konulması gündemdedir.
Bu konuda kamuyounu bilgilendirmek ve süreci durdurmak amacıyla çeşitli girişimler ve etkinlikler sürmektedir. İstanbul’da hazırladığımız İngilizce bir metni derneklerin
ortak imzasına açarak yurtdışında da (Dernekler, dergiler, şahıslar, özellikle akademik çevreler ve AİHM’ye etkisi olabilecek bütün yollar) yaygınlaştırmayı planlıyoruz.
Bu dayanışmaya katılacak üniversite derneklerinin imzalarını almak istiyoruz.
Ekte hazırlanan ingilizce metin ve AİHM’ye son verilen dilekçe yer almaktadır.
Hızla mensubu olduğunuz derneklerin gündemine konuyu götürerek görüşünüzü bildirir misiniz?İyi dileklerimizle. 11.11.14Prof. Dr. Kürşat Yıldız
TÜMÖD İstanbul Şubesi Yönetim Kurulu adına

*************

PROF. RENNAN PEKÜNLÜ and JUSTICE

Prof. Rennan Pekünlü, a professor in the Department of Astronomy and Space Sciences in the Faculty of Arts & Sciences of Ege University in İzmir, Turkey is a distinguished scholar of international recognition.  Following the 12th September 1980 military coup, he was dismissed from university along with many other progressive academics, in the suppressive atmosphere of the time. He later went back to his studies, as the political climate normalized. However, as a scholar of scientific perspective with explicit arguments against reactionary theories in his field of study, his persecution could not have come to an end. This time, he was brought to trial by a student of the Mathematics Department of the same university, Fatma Nur Gidal, on the charge of grasping her right to education in the academic year, 2010-11.  Professor Pekünlü was accused of not allowing the women students
with head scarves into the university and taking their pictures to provide proof for his action. The court ruled that Prof. Pekünlü to be sentenced to 2 years and 1 month of imprisonment basing its decision on “strong indication of criminal intent
on the part of the accused”. The Supreme Court of Appeal approved this ruling on 23.7.2013 with a majority vote. Presently, Prof. Pekünlü’s attorney has appealed to the ECHR for immediate suspension of the execution of the prison sentence,
which will be started on 20th November, 2014. A development in this direction
will prevent a man of science from going behind bars.

The actions which constituted the grounds for the court ruling were that Prof. Pekünlü made a report of the actions of the claimant and took photographs of the same person in order to prove his claim. The claimant argued that Prof. Pekünlü,
by taking her photographs was acting against her right to privacy and by not allowing her into the university premises, he had prevented her right to education. The basis for the sentencing was presented by the court, as Article 112 of the Turkish Criminal Code which comprises the prevention of the right to education
by way of force and intimidation.

However,

  1. The accused did NOT use force or intimidation. Therefore, it is NOT possible to argue that the actions of the accused can be referred to the said article, and that the accused was activated by a criminal intention.
  2. Professor Pekünlü has argued that he did NOT prevent the claimant’s entrance into the university, nor did he prevent her participation in the classes. Pekünlü has proved this by submitting the attendance sheets of his course and the marks the claimant got in her examinations which would not have been there, had her attendance been prevented.
  3. The four other students who brought similar claims which all are subject to similar trials are not even Professor Pekünlü’s students, therefore any prevention of attendance is out of the question.
  4. The photographs taken by Prof. Pekünlü which were presented to the court clearly show that the object of Pekünlü’s camera was not the students but a woman with a questionable identity giving instructions to the students and a male figure taking photographs. This positioning is obvious in the photographs taken by Pekünlü.
  5. As is already known, the 1989 and 1991 rulings of the Turkish Supreme Court and its binding acceptance in 1998, 2001 and 2008 when certain political parties were under trial, that the covering of the head by women in public spaces should be regarded as openly declaring one’s religious adherence and that it was therefore against laicism which is one of the main pillars of the Turkish Constitution, clearly comprise a jurisprudence.
  6. Similarly, The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and its Great Chamber, on similar claims of certain women students from Turkey, that their rights to education was prevented, had ruled that the prohibition of head covering in public spaces was not a breach of their rights to education and that they had already been aware that they were not to be allowed to cover their heads if they became students in the university and that their enrollment in the universities showed that they accepted this condition.Therefore, the rulings of both the Supreme Court of Turkey and the ECHR are binding for all civil courts and administrative bodies in Turkey. They cannot be overlooked by any court or any department in the administrative system of Turkey.

This prison sentence given by the court will possibly trigger similar rulings in the two other courts that Professor Pekünlü is being trialed. His removal from the university will not only be injustice for him, it will also be grasping the rights of the students and the young academics of his department, who will be deprived of his guidance.

Mr. Sabih Kanadoğlu, the Honorary Chief Prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals and the President of the Turkish Law Institute, and Bülent Serim, the ex- General Secretary of the Constitutional Court made public declaration of their views on the subject, explaining the injustice being done.

If a crime is being committed, it is committed by the President of the Committee of Higher Education for having dismissed the rulings of the Supreme Court  and  declared covering of the head admissible in public spaces, with a mere memorandum and the University Rectors who have obeyed this memorandum although it clearly conflicts with the Constitution and the academics who have stayed silent to all the injustice they have been observing.  As always, a young scholar is being victimized by those who use religious sentiments for political ends.  It is most unfortunate that people no longer have any hope in the biased Turkish judicial system under the present administration.