Turkey's relationship with European human rights law is on the verge of collapse after the European Court of Human Right...

Turkey's relationship with European human rights law is on the verge of collapse after the European Court of Human Rights issued a ruling on August 25 ordering the immediate release of jailed activist and businessman Osman Kavala and awarding him 70,000 euros in damages for moral harm. It was the third time the Strasbourg court ruled against Turkey in this case, following earlier decisions in 2019 and 2022. Turkey has been a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights since 1954 and formally accepted the court's mandatory jurisdiction in 1990, yet the Erdogan government has refused to comply with any of the rulings. The most explosive response came from Mehmet Ucum, one of President Erdogan's senior legal advisers. He declared that national justice takes priority over international jurisdiction and went as far as proposing that Turkey formally withdraw from the European Convention, accusing Europe of practicing "colonial rule in the field of law." The president of Turkey's Bar Associations, Erinc Sagan, fired back immediately, saying Ucum "does not know what he is talking about" and that his comments violate the Turkish constitution. Sagan noted that Erdogan does technically have the power to exit the convention by presidential decree, pointing to a precedent where Erdogan used exactly that tool to withdraw Turkey from the Istanbul Convention protecting women's rights. Ekrem Imamoglu, Istanbul's former mayor and Erdogan's most dangerous political rival, is currently in prison on charges of corruption and alleged links to a terrorist organization. He has been held since March 2025. European Parliament rapporteur on Turkey, Nacho Sanchez Amor, was in Istanbul monitoring the trial and told Turkish authorities bluntly that their judiciary "is not independent" and that Turkey is "an authoritarian country." EU-Turkey expert Dr. Cengiz Aktar summed up the moment starkly, saying the relationship between Turkey and Europe "has always been a love-hate relationship, but now the hate is tipping the scales." #Turkey #EuropeanCourt #HumanRights