Position Papers

This position paper has been prepared by the International Association for Human Rights Advocacy in Geneva (IAHRA Geneva) to address the annex titled “Additional Information concerning the communications before the Human Rights Committee" submitted by the Turkish Government as supplementary observations aiming to bolster the Government's stance in various communications currently under review by the Committee.

Firstly, it is important to highlight that the Second Chamber's judgment in the Yasak case has been referred to the Grand Chamber of the ECtHR for re-examination, following the acceptance of the applicant's request for referral by a five-judge panel on 16 December 2024.

As such, this judgment is legally void and holds no authoritative validity unless and until it is endorsed by the Grand Chamber. Therefore, any reliance on this judgment to dismiss or undermine claims before this Committee is procedurally and substantively unfounded.

The document focused mainly on the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR/Court) judgment in Yasak v. Turkiye (Application no. 17389/20), delivered on 27 August 2024. The Yasak case concerns the applicant's conviction for membership in an armed terrorist organization (“FETO/PDY”) under Turkish law, and therein, the ECtHR concluded that there was no violation of Article 7 (no punishment without law) or Article 3 (prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Although the Yasak judgment is not yet final (as at the time of the writing of this paper), as the applicant has requested a referral to the ECHR Grand Chamber, the Turkish Government has relied on this judgment to argue for the foreseeability of the author's conviction and the fairness of domestic legal proceedings.

The following sections of the position paper will analyze the assessments presented in the “Additional Information” document within the broader context of the Yasak case. This analysis will address discrepancies, examine legal principles, and assess the implications of the ECtHR judgment as referenced by the Turkish Government.