Turkey summons 10 ambassadors over Osman Kavala statement
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey summoned ambassadors of 10 countries who issued a statement condemning lengthy delays in the trial of a philanthropist, state-owned media reported Tuesday.
“Today marks four years since the ongoing detention of Osman Kavala began. The continuing delays in his trial… cast a shadow over respect for democracy, the rule of law and transparency in the Turkish judiciary system,” read a joint statement on Monday from the embassies of the United States, Canada, France, Finland, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, and Sweden.
They called for Turkey “to secure his urgent release.”
Kavala was arrested in November 2017 on charges of overthrowing the constitutional order of Turkey and espionage. He was accused of financing a 2013 protest in Istanbul and was acquitted, but was re-arrested and charged with taking part in the 2016 attempted coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The European Court of Human Rights in 2019 ordered Turkey to release Kavala pending trial and the Council of Europe has warned Ankara to comply with the ruling or it would launch disciplinary proceedings. In a recent interview with AFP, Kavala said the Council of Europe is his best hope for release.
Diplomatic sources told Anadolu Agency on Tuesday that Turkey summoned the 10 ambassadors who signed the joint statement.
Turkish politicians also condemned the statement on Twitter.
"Statements by diplomats, who work in our country, to influence the Turkish judiciary are unacceptable," tweeted Omer Celik, spokesperson for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu also said it was “unacceptable” for diplomats to interfere in a judicial matter and Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul tweeted they had stepped out of the bounds of their diplomatic role.
Kavala’s next court hearing is scheduled for November 26.
“Today marks four years since the ongoing detention of Osman Kavala began. The continuing delays in his trial… cast a shadow over respect for democracy, the rule of law and transparency in the Turkish judiciary system,” read a joint statement on Monday from the embassies of the United States, Canada, France, Finland, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, and Sweden.
They called for Turkey “to secure his urgent release.”
Kavala was arrested in November 2017 on charges of overthrowing the constitutional order of Turkey and espionage. He was accused of financing a 2013 protest in Istanbul and was acquitted, but was re-arrested and charged with taking part in the 2016 attempted coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The European Court of Human Rights in 2019 ordered Turkey to release Kavala pending trial and the Council of Europe has warned Ankara to comply with the ruling or it would launch disciplinary proceedings. In a recent interview with AFP, Kavala said the Council of Europe is his best hope for release.
Diplomatic sources told Anadolu Agency on Tuesday that Turkey summoned the 10 ambassadors who signed the joint statement.
Turkish politicians also condemned the statement on Twitter.
"Statements by diplomats, who work in our country, to influence the Turkish judiciary are unacceptable," tweeted Omer Celik, spokesperson for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu also said it was “unacceptable” for diplomats to interfere in a judicial matter and Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul tweeted they had stepped out of the bounds of their diplomatic role.
Kavala’s next court hearing is scheduled for November 26.