Emre Çınar, a Turkish lawyer representing the Willow International School in Mozambique who was detained following an extradition request from Turkish authorities, was released pending trial by a Mozambican court on Monday, rights groups reported.
Çınar, 30, had been detained on December 30 following an extradition request from Turkey over alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement. Restrictions on his access to a lawyer and family as well as the lack of updates on his whereabouts after detention raised concerns over his possible extradition.
Human rights organizations warned that Çınar could face persecution if extradited and that the risk of extradition remains, saying they will continue to monitor the case closely. A prominent Mozambican lawyer noted that the detention was illegal, citing the absence of an extradition agreement between Mozambique and Turkey. Another lawyer added that if Turkey’s allegations are proven to be politically motivated, the court has the right to reject the extradition request.
Çınar, who left Turkey amid political pressure, has been living in Maputo since 2017.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been targeting followers of the Gülen movement, inspired by the late Muslim cleric Fethullah Gülen, since corruption investigations in December 2013 implicated him as well as some members of his family and inner circle.
Dismissing the investigations as a Gülenist coup and a conspiracy against his government, Erdoğan began to target the movement’s members. He designated the movement as a terrorist organization in May 2016 and intensified the crackdown on it following an abortive putsch in July of the same year that he accused Gülen of masterminding. The movement strongly denies involvement in the coup attempt or any terrorist activity.
Under the international legal principle of non-refoulement, asylum-seekers and refugees should be protected from removal to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened. The principle is a cornerstone of refugee protection enshrined in the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention.
Since the coup attempt Erdoğan’s long arm has reached tens of thousands of Turkish citizens abroad. From surveillance through diplomatic missions and pro-government diaspora organizations to the denial of consular services and outright intimidation and illegal renditions, the Turkish government has employed a wide range of tactics against its critics overseas. The campaign has mostly relied on renditions, in which Turkey and its National Intelligence Organization (MİT) persuade other states to hand over individuals without due process. Victims of such operations have reported several human rights violations, including arbitrary arrest, torture and ill-treatment. MİT has acknowledged conducting operations for the forcible return of more than 100 people accused of links to the Gülen movement.
