CASE OF A. AND OTHERS AGAINST TURKEY AND 204 OTHER CASES (European Court of Human Rights)

Resolution CM/ResDH(2019)51
Execution of the judgments and decisions of the European Court of Human Rights
205 judgments and 69 decision concerning the actions of the Turkish security forces (Aksoy group)

(Adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 14 March 2019
at the 1340th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies)

The Committee of Ministers, under the terms of Article 46, paragraph 2, of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which provides that the Committee supervises the execution of final judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (hereinafter “the Convention” and “the Court”),

Having regard to the 205 final judgments against Turkey listed in the Appendix hereto, transmitted by the Court to the Committee, in which the Court found that there had been numerous violations of the Convention mainly on account of:

– the unlawful killing of theapplicants’ next-of-kin by members of the security forces;

– the failure to protect the right to life of the applicants’ next-of-kin;

– ill-treatment;

– destruction of property; and

– the lack of effective domestic remedies for the applicants’ complaints;

Bearing in mind that 69 cases involving similar complaints have been struck out of list by the Court following the conclusion of friendly settlements or other solutions found, in particular on the basis of the respondent Government’s undertaking to take remedial measures (see Appendix);

Recalling the respondent State’s obligation, under Article 46, paragraph 1 of the Convention, to abide by all final judgments in cases to which it has been a party and that this obligation entails, over and above the payment of any sums awarded by the Court, the adoption by the authorities of the respondent State, where required:

– of individual measures to put an end to violations established and erase their consequences so as to achieve as far as possible restitutio in integrum; and

– of general measures preventing similar violations;

Noting that the violations in these cases mainly took place against the background of the fight against terrorism, under the state of emergency between 1987 and 2002;

Recalling, however, that each contracting State, in combatting terrorism, must act in full respect of its obligations under the Convention, as set out in the Court’s judgments and developed in the Guidelines of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on Human Rights and the Fight against Terrorism;

Recalling furthermore that, in view of the important shortcomings in the regulatory framework such as the shortness of the relevant prescription periods which prevented the public prosecutors to carry out effective criminal investigations into the actions of the security forces during this period, the issue of individual measures had largely to be integrated by the Committee into that of the general measures necessary to allow for effective investigations;

Recalling further the Committee’s continuing follow-up of the progress achieved by Turkey in adopting the necessary measures, presented notably in its Interim Resolutions IntResDH(99)434 of 9 June 1999, IntResDH(2002)98 of 10 July 2002, ResDH(2005)43 of 7 June 2005 and CM/ResDH(2008)69 of 18 September 2008;

Welcoming the extensive general measures adopted (see DH-DD(2019)155), including:

– the giving of direct effect to the Convention requirements;

– the introduction of the right of individual application to the Constitutional Court;

– the removal of any prescription period or requirement for administrative authorisation for investigations and prosecutions of crimes of torture and ill-treatment;

– the improvement of procedural safeguards in police custody, , including the right to access to a lawyer;

– the alignment of the detention periods and regulations with the Convention standards;

– the prompt and efficient implementation of the “Law on Compensation of the Losses Resulting from Terrorism and from the Measures taken against Terrorists”;

– the improvement of professional training for members of the security forces;

– the training of judges and prosecutors;

Recalling also that the Committee continues to supervise the execution of general measures related to the accountability of members of the security forces, in particular, in the Bati and Others group of cases, the need for administrative authorisation to prosecute certain crimes other than torture and ill-treatment; and, in the KasaandErdoğanand Others groups, the remaining issues concerning the overall conduct of police and gendarmerie operations;

Noting that the closure of the present group of cases does not in any way prejudge the Committee’s evaluation of the general measures in the above three groups;

Recalling, finally, that as regards remaining aspects of individual measures, the criminal proceedings in 13 cases are pending before the judicial authorities (namely, E.O. (28497/95), Anter and Others (55983/00), Zengin (46928/99), Nesibe Haran (28299/95), Seyhan (33384/96), Ahmet Özkan and Others (21689/93), Belkıza Kaya and Others (33420/96), Mahmut Kaya (22535/93), Ekrem (75632/01), Wolf-Sorg (6458/03), Özgen andOthers (38607/97), Akdeniz andOthers (23954/94), İpek (25760/94)) and that the Committee will continue to examine these cases in a separate group (Mahmut Kaya);

Having satisfied itself that the general measures required by Article 46, paragraph 1, have been adopted,

DECLARES that it has exercised its functions under Article 46, paragraph 2, of the Convention in the cases listed in appendix, and

DECIDES to close the examination thereof.

Appendix

[1]Report of the former European Commission on Human Rights.