Today in Ankara, the informal working group between the Council of Europe and the Turkish Ministry of Justice met to discuss issues relating to freedom of expression in the country. Secretary General Jagland said: “There was progress today. Now we are looking forward to real change”.
The working group was established at the beginning of the year as part of Turkey’s Action Plan to prevent violations of the European Convention on Human Rights. The meeting was attended by Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland’s representatives, Ministry of Justice officials and a representative of Turkey’s telecommunications authority (TIB).
All the following issues raised have been highlighted by judgments of the European Court of Human Rights and alerts registered on the Council of Europe’s Platform for the Safety of Journalists:
- Application of anti-terror legislation and provisions within the Penal Code affecting freedom of expression
- Issues relating to the implementation of defamation laws and criminal sanctions (Articles 125 and 299 of the Penal Code)
- Deprivation of liberty affecting journalists, including cases registered on the Council of Europe Platform for the Safety of journalists
- Measures to filter and block websites
The following actions were agreed:
- The Council of Europe will facilitate an open dialogue between the Ministry of Justice, the Turkish judiciary and representatives from civil society. A high-level Conference will be held in Ankara as early as possible in the first half of 2016, bringing together the Minister of Justice, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, judges from the European Court of Human Rights, representatives from the Turkish High Courts, representatives from the media and civil society and other key stakeholders.
- The Conference will feed into a review of anti-terror legislation, relevant provisions of the Penal Code, internet law, and the practical implementation of these laws, in the context of the Convention and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. The review, led by the informal working group in broad consultation with relevant actors, will be finalized as early as possible in 2016. As necessary, draft amendments to the legislation will be prepared.
- The Council of Europe and the Turkish Ministry of Justice will organize a series of thematic workshops on case law of the European Court of Human Rights relating to freedom of expression for prosecutors and judges responsible for relevant cases.
The informal working group will meet again in February.
See also:
Turkey and the Council of Europe