The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled Tuesday that Türkiye’s pre-trial detainment of political activist Kamuran Yüksek violated his right to liberty, security, and freedom of expression.
Yüksek alleged that Türkiye had violated Article 5(1) and (3) (right to liberty and security) and Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention on Human Rights. Yüksek claimed that, absent a sufficient evidentiary basis, he had been detained on account of expressing political opinions out of favour with the government.
The case concerned Yüksek’s four-month pre-trial detention before being convicted for membership of a terrorist organisation in 2017 and sentenced to eight years and nine months imprisonment. Yüksek had been charged with membership of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, otherwise known as the PKK, an organization categorized as a terrorist group that employs militancy to achieve autonomy for Kurds living in Türkiye. Leading up to his detainment, Yüksek co-chaired a left-wing pro-Kurdish party known as the Democratic Regions Party. During his time as co-chair, Yüksek found himself in hot water for several speeches, public demonstrations and media statements that opposed the government’s war policies and called for civil disobedience.
Yüksek’s detainment in police custody was extended in 2016, leading to his appearance in front of the public prosecutor and his invocation of “struggle” and “resistance” against the government as calls for non-violent civil disobedience and endeavors for self-governance. The public prosecutor subsequently sought an order for pre-trial detention on suspicion of membership of an armed terrorist organization. The Magistrate’s Court granted the order because “there was strong evidence giving rise to a strong suspicion that an offence has been committed under Article 100 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, namely membership of an armed terrorist organisation.” The magistrate found that “under the guise of political activity he had called on the people to take to the streets in accordance with the aims of the terrorist organisation.”
Following his conviction, Yüksek stated that the decision was of a political nature and condemned the lack of freedom of expression in politics in Türkiye, highlighting the pressure exercised by the government on Kurdish politics and the overall discrimination against the community.
By six votes to one, the court held Yüksek’s pre-trail detention to be in violation of all three rights under the convention and ordered Türkiye to pay €1,500 ($1 ,615) for costs and expenses. Regarding the right to liberty, the court affirmed that “None of the decisions on the applicant’s initial and continued pre-trial detention cited evidence that could have indicated a clear link between his actions”
Similar reasoning was put forth regarding the right to security. The court found that the national courts had failed to present sufficient information that gave rise to a suspicion justifying pre-trial detention. It was emphasised that “the persistence of a reasonable suspicion” is necessary for continued detention. In finding a violation of the right to freedom of expression, it was relevant that the speeches formed part of Yüksek’s political activity and concerned ongoing debate.
