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European court president says Turkey should play by the rules
In an annual report released on Thursday, the court, Europe’s top judicial body able to rule on human rights violations, found that Turkey is by far the worst violator of human rights among the 47 signatory states of the European Convention on Human Rights. In statistical data on violation judgments by country for the period between 1959 and 2009, Turkey topped the chart with 18.81 percent of all violation judgments, followed by Italy with 16.57 percent and Russia with 6.34 percent.
Asked if he thinks there should be a complete overhaul of the Turkish legal system, Costa said: “You can gradually harmonize laws. It takes time. When you become a member of the CoE, when you sign the convention, you need to gradually harmonize national laws.” He underlined that there are areas where reforms have to happen through legislative changes, especially in civil and criminal procedures.
The European court president warned that not only must the text of the law be changed but also the mindset, customs and practice to bring member states into conformity with European democratic norms. “There is no country in Europe where torture is allowed. All 47 members have banned torture. Unfortunately, cases of torture do happen here and there. Asserting certain principles and condemning states that violate articles gradually improves relations.”
A landmark intergovernmental conference on the court’s future will take place in February in Interlaken. Its aim is to reaffirm the states’ commitment to the protection of human rights in Europe and to draw up a roadmap for the future development of the court. President Costa said member countries acceded to the CoE and signed the convention at different times and that they do not have the same democratic history. “We should all sit together around the same table [at this conference],” he said, adding that the human rights mechanism had to be reinforced and the effectiveness of the court ensured.
Members should learn from decisions
Erik Fribergh, the European court’s registrar, complained that the court receives similar cases from throughout Europe. He told reporters on Thursday that member states should examine the courts’ judgments and implement measures that are necessary to remove problems the judgments target. “We must find ways to repatriate these cases so that they are solved at the member state level. The caseload [of the court] will be decreased significantly if member states deal with it,” he said.
“If judgments are put into practice, the caseload will decrease dramatically. Member states should look at remedies for the situation after a judgment is passed. This should not be limited to only one member state. If the court issues a judgment in one area, other member states should look to see if there are consequences in their own country,” he added.
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