Kavala was convicted in connection with the 2013 anti-government protests in Turkey, which began over a plan to turn a small park in central Istanbul into a shopping mall in the summer.
The demonstrations quickly turned into larger anti-government rallies across Turkey. The court also sentenced seven other defendants to 18 years in prison for aiding and abetting an attempt to overthrow the government. Among them were 71-year-old architect Mucella Japici, Istanbul Mayor Typhoon Kahraman and documentary filmmaker Sigdem Mater.
The 13th heavy criminal court in Istanbul has ordered activists who have not been arrested pending trial to be arrested immediately, Anadolu reported.
Kavala, his lawyers, other defendants and their lawyers have repeatedly denied the allegations, saying prosecutors have no evidence to support the allegations. They are also expected to appeal the sentence.
Kavala, 64, is among Turkey’s most notorious detainees.
He was first arrested in 2017 on charges related to the 2013 Gezi Park protests in Istanbul. The trial was closely monitored by human rights groups, which accused the Turkish government of using the judiciary to deal with dissenters.
Although Kavala was acquitted in 2020, that sentence was overturned and new charges were brought against him for his alleged involvement in a coup attempt in July 2016 that killed at least 250 people and subsequent repression, which has seen more than 110,000 people, including detained government officials, teachers, activists and journalists.
Amnesty International called Monday’s decision a “devastating blow” to human rights, saying the court’s decision “contradicts any logic”.
“Today we have witnessed a parody of justice on a grand scale. “This sentence deals a devastating blow not only to Osman Kavala, his co-defendants and their families, but also to all those who believe in justice and human rights activism in Turkey and beyond,” Amnesty said in a statement.
Kavala’s arrest has strained the Turkish government’s relations with the West. Ten ambassadors, including representatives of the United States, France and Germany, issued a statement demanding his release, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called them “persona non grata”.
German Foreign Minister Analena Burbock called the verdict a “clear contradiction” to Turkey’s international commitments as a member of the Council of Europe, according to a statement issued by Germany’s federal embassy on Monday. She also called for the immediate release of Kavala.
In February, Europe’s highest human rights body, the Council of Europe, launched infringement proceedings against Turkey for refusing to comply with a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights calling for Kavala’s release on the grounds that his rights were were violated.
In a statement Monday, two leading ministers of the European Parliament said after the ruling: “This deplorable decision of the 13th Heavy Criminal Court in Istanbul is a clear disregard for the rulings of the European Court of Human Rights and will certainly lead to the consequences of the violation. is under way in the Council of Europe. “
The European Parliament’s Permanent Rapporteur on Turkey, Nacho Sanchez Amor, and Sergei Lagodinski, chairman of the EU-Turkey parliamentary delegation, expressed solidarity with Kavala, the other indictees and their families in a statement.
“(This is) a very sad day not only for them, but also for those who daily defend the fundamental rights and rule of law in Turkey, as well as for all who want to see the country move closer to the EU. This is obviously not the way to do it, “they said.
“There is little or no prospect for the EU for current Turkey, which is moving away from the international consensus on rule-based order while not respecting its own international commitments,” they added.
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