In response to the decision to bring the case against philanthropist Osman Kavala back to a top European court, President Tayyip Erdogan warned on Thursday that Turkey will not respect the Council of Europe if it does not respect Turkish courts.
Kavala, one of Turkey's most high-profile captives, has been imprisoned without charge for more than four years. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) determined more than two years ago that Kavala should be released immediately and that his arrest was used to suppress him, but Turkey has not followed through on the decision.
On Thursday, the Council said that its committee had submitted the case to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to evaluate whether Turkey had failed to comply with its commitment to implement the court's decision in accordance with the European Convention on Human Rights. The referral to the European Court of Human Rights is the next step in "infringement procedures" that might lead to Turkey's expulsion from the Council of Europe, of which it is a founding member.
"The Committee decided that Turkey is refusing to follow by the Court's final ruling in Mr Kavala's case by failing to facilitate Mr Kavala's prompt release," it said in a statement. Erdogan remarked during a press conference that nations who do not accept Turkey's courts will not be recognised.
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