Nearly 2,000 Turkish expatriates, purge victims, rights advocates and lawmakers gathered Wednesday in front of the Council of Europe (CoE) headquarters in Strasbourg to demand action on Turkey’s refusal to implement binding European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) rulings, marking the fourth annual demonstration organized by the Peaceful Actions Platform, Turkish Minute reported.
According to Bünyamin Tekin’s report, the protest, held under the slogan “Justice for Everyone,” drew participants from across Europe, including groups from Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom. Demonstrators chanted “Justice delayed is justice denied!” as they marched toward the CoE headquarters, carrying banners and portraits of jailed politicians, academics and civil servants.
The protest, the fourth of similar protests held in 2022, 2023 and 2024, came amid growing frustration with the CoE’s failure to hold Turkey accountable for continued defiance of the ECtHR judgments in landmark cases such as those of philanthropist Osman Kavala, Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtaş and former teacher Yüksel Yalçınkaya.
At the heart of the Yalçınkaya case is the Turkish government’s crackdown on the Gülen movement, a faith-based civic initiative inspired by the late Muslim cleric Fethullah Gülen. For decades, the movement operated a global network of schools and charities, including hundreds of educational institutions inside Turkey. It was publicly supported by successive Turkish governments until 2013.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been targeting followers of the Gülen movement since corruption investigations revealed in 2013 implicated then-prime minister Erdoğan as well as 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. His government 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.
Since the failed coup, at least 705,172 people have been investigated on terrorism or coup-related charges due to their alleged links to the movement. There are currently at least 13,251 people in prison as a result of pretrial detention or convictions related to terrorism in Gülen-linked trials.
Despite the ECtHR’s 2023 ruling in favor of Yalçınkaya, who was convicted based on evidence linking him to the Gülen movement, a Turkish court reimposed his sentence in 2024. The CoE’s Committee of Ministers has yet to initiate infringement proceedings over the case, prompting criticism from human rights monitors and lawmakers.
At least 6,503 people have been detained in Turkey since the ECtHR issued the Yalçınkaya judgment, according to organizers, on similar allegations such as downloading the ByLock messaging app or holding accounts at Gülen-linked banks.
Visual installations and symbolic performances
The Strasbourg demonstration featured symbolic performances, including a satirical theater piece staged in front of the ECtHR building. The play parodied news anchors being arrested on air and CoE officials issuing perfunctory statements of concern before heading off to leisure activities.
A 20-meter-long “Justice Wall” painted by exiled artists depicted jailed figures such as İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, Kavala and Demirtaş as well as scenes of family separation and judicial repression. Protesters were invited to write their own messages on the lower half.
Other installations included cardboard cutouts representing detainees and dove balloons tethered by symbolic “chains.” Several Pikachu-costumed activists returned this year, referencing a viral video from Turkey showing police chasing a Pikachu protester at a pro-İmamoğlu rally.
Civil society organizations under the Peaceful Actions Platform delivered letters to CoE Secretary-General Alain Berset, Commissioner for Human Rights Michael O’Flaherty and ECtHR President Mattias Guyomar, urging their respective institutions to take action against Ankara’s human rights record.
Protesters then observed a moment of silence for victims of Turkey’s post-coup purge, followed by video testimony from families affected by the crackdown.
Speakers included Sevda Güven, a former judge and the wife of Zeki Güven, a former senior police intelligence chief who died under suspicious circumstances in Turkish custody in 2018; Nurten Ateş, the wife of Önder Ateş, a former English teacher who died of COVID-19 in prison after being jailed over alleged Gülen links; Harun Ataç, the father of Ahmet Burhan Ataç, an 8-year-old cancer patient who died after a travel ban on his mother prevented access to treatment in Germany; Demet Oğuz, a former public servant and the wife of Mehmet Kamil Oğuz, a journalist who died in 2021 after being imprisoned over alleged Gülen links and later diagnosed with cancer; and Murat Erkurt, a torture survivor. Their messages highlighted the long-term impact of state persecution on their families.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo also conveyed a message of solidarity.
Lawmakers speak out
Numerous members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) attended and delivered remarks.
Spanish PACE member Laura Castel commemorated 15-year-old Sümeyra Gelir, who died while her mother was imprisoned on political charges. Castel called her story emblematic of the broader suffering caused by Turkey’s crackdown and described it as a symbol in the push for justice. “Justice delayed is justice denied,” she said.
German PACE member Vinzenz Glaser warned that Turkey’s judicial independence had collapsed, citing mass dismissals of judges and prosecutors since 2016 and reports of prolonged pretrial detention and degrading treatment in custody. He urged the immediate enforcement of ECtHR judgments.
Belgian minister and PACE member Benjamin Dalle, speaking as a member of the Brussels Parliament and Belgian Senate, condemned Turkey’s replacement of elected mayors with state-appointed trustees, calling it “an assault on local democracy.” He called on the CoE to uphold the principle that court rulings are binding, not optional.
French PACE member Emmanuel Fernandes highlighted a recent PACE monitoring report describing Turkey as being at a “tipping point” due to democratic backsliding, including the politicization of the judiciary and abuse of pretrial detention. He stressed that Turkey’s continued non-compliance with ECtHR rulings undermines the CoE’s credibility.
Christophe Lacroix, a Belgian federal MP and PACE delegate, denounced arbitrary arrests under President Erdoğan and spotlighted the cases of İmamoğlu, Demirtaş and Kavala. He also referenced the death of Gelir and concluded by saying, “You can jail people, but you can’t jail the idea of freedom.”
Green Party MP Sandra Regol echoed calls for justice, criticizing discriminatory practices against minorities and politically motivated arrests. “Justice and equality cannot exist without the rule of law,” she said. She concluded by affirming that ecologists like herself will always stand in solidarity with those who fight for rights and dignity — whether in Turkey or elsewhere.
Human rights lawyers and activists
Paris-based human rights lawyer Anaïs Lefort warned of systemic repression in Turkey, citing the construction of 130 new prisons since 2016 and the continued misuse of counterterrorism laws to prosecute ordinary civilians. “Sharing a flat, using a messaging app or attending tutoring can be labeled terrorism,” she said. Lefort called on the ECtHR to handle Turkey’s applications with the urgency they deserve.
Former Norwegian politician and journalist Odd Anders With, the author of “Turkish Tears,” described how he had interviewed dozens of exiled Turkish victims of torture, imprisonment and abduction. He criticized Western governments for continuing cooperation with Ankara and called for principled action, not “concerned” statements.
Dag Aakre, a senior leader in the Church of Norway, said the persecution of peaceful citizens in Turkey is a moral test for Europe. He invoked the poem of German pastor Martin Niemöller to emphasize the cost of silence.
Personal testimonies: I came in handcuffs to my son’s funeral
Several purge victims delivered emotional speeches. Among them was Bekir Berk Görmez, who spoke about his wife, teacher Fatma Görmez, who lost her job by emergency decree and died following a prolonged illness. Their son died of cancer while Görmez was in prison. “I was brought in handcuffs to his funeral,” he said. His daughter Azize, now 19, described growing up alone after losing her mother and brother.
Özge Elif Hendekçi, a lawyer imprisoned for five years with her infant daughter, said she came to reclaim the honor of her profession. “I want no more babies growing up behind bars,” she told the crowd.
Hatice Aksoy, the sister of Hasan Aksoy — whose wife and child drowned in the Aegean while trying to flee the post-coup crackdown in Turkey — described the trauma of retrieving a child’s body from the sea and burying loved ones while the father was imprisoned. “My 3-year-old nephew was labeled a terrorist,” she said. “We are not just a family. We are the face of a silenced tragedy.”
Support from European cities and church leaders
European parliamentarian Kathleen Van Brempt said Mayor İmamoğlu’s arrest was “a shocking development” and demanded his release. Mayors from Amsterdam, Athens, Lisbon and Timisoara echoed this in video messages, calling the arrest an attack on democratic rights.
Norwegian Bishop Herborg Finnset referenced the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and condemned repression of the Gülen movement. She called on Christians and all people of conscience to resist injustice.
The Peaceful Actions Platform has announced its intention to continue organizing annual protests until meaningful enforcement actions are taken by the Council of Europe.
