ECHR slams Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan Bodyguards' Impunity for Brutalizing a 80% Blind Protestor

*Strasbourg/- ECHR Unanimously condemned Ankara for Persisting Impunity of Butal Violations of Human Rights until Today (2/2013), even at the Highest level : that of Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, by violating during 2007-2013 twice the Art. 3 of the PanEuropean Convention of H.R. which prohibits Torture/Inhuman-Degrading Treatments, and by "attributing a quasi-Impunity to the (Turkish) Prime Minister's Bodyguards for alleged Violence" against a quasi-Blind Peasant, who was Brutaly Punched at the Head, suffered many Wounds, and was Arrested by the Police oveNight, accused for "Insults" just for daring ask Erdogan, after his Speech, a Critical Question about Agricultural products' prices...

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The ECHR 2013 move closely follows other, 2011 repeated Violent incidents also provoked by "Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan's bodyguards" even inside the UN Headquarters in New York, mainstream Media as "Reuters" reported.
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But now, the growing problems of Turkish Economy's Downward trend recently (Comp. Facts f.ex. at : http://www.eurofora.net/forum/index.php?&topic=594.0), added to a Notorious Arbitrariness in Oppressing Citizens' basic Freedoms, and particularly of Expression, aggravated by a scandalously prolonged Impunity of Turkish State Agents' Violence and other Criminal acts (See Infra), are obviously behind the case of Necati Yilmaz, a 50 years old peasant from Herakles' village at Trapezounta (currently Arakli - Trabzon), 80% Blind on both eyes, who dared ask the Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, at the end of his Speech on just another Road, to "better speak us about the Price of Hazelnuts, which affects all the People here", as ECHR noted.

The quasi-Blind old man was immediately arrested "by 3 (Turkish) Policemen", accused to "Insult" the Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, and "transfered by force to the Police Station", before being obiged to be examined in 2 different Hospitals overNight, for "receiving Blows at his Head", reportedly hit by the Fists of Erdogan's Bodyguards while closed "inside the Car", resulting with "a 1 cm. Scratch at the Right Eye, Pain around his Eyebrows, a Red Lesion at the ...Neck, and Pain at his Head's "Parietal Zone" (crucial for Optical Vision, i.e. threatening to make him Totally Blind, and, thus, 100% Handicaped, entirely Dependent)..

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>>> The victim denounced that "he was Arrested for having Protested, with a loud Voice, at the End of a Speech by the (Turkish) Prime Minister (Erdogan), and, was afterwards Hit by his Bodyguards, inside a car which brought him to a Police station", ECHR noted.

 But Ankara claimed that the victim was simply "arrested and pushed away from the area where the (Turkish) Prime Minister (Erdogan) pronounced his Speech, in order to avoid any undesirable (sic !) act from his part", and that  "Medical Reports wouldn't prove, beyond any reasonable doubt, the facts that he denounced".
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 - "Until Today (2/2013), the (Turkish Prime Ministers') Bodyguards have Not yet been Identified, and that because of the (Turkish) Authorities' inertia", while "not any new information concerning this procedure was ever submitted to the Court", denounced EuroJudges.

- "On April 2007", the victim "lodged a Complaint for Ill-Treatments, against the (Turkish) Policemen responsible for having Arrested him", "complaining that he had been Beaten, hit by the Fists of (Turkish) Prime Minister (Erdogan's) Bodyguards, while being tranfered by a Car to a Police Station", ECHR noted.

But, at first,  both "on April, .. 13 and 23 July 2007, the (local Turkish) Attorneys declared themselves as territorially Incompetent", before changing their mind only "on August 2007", when "the (local) Attorney asked the Interior Ministry to give a Nominal List of the Bodyguards in charge of the Prime Minister's protection on April 7, 2007". However, on "September 2007, the deputy-Director of the Service responsible for the protection of  Prime Minister (Erdogan), replied that the Identity of those Bodyguards, who had arrested the victim, could not be determined (sic!)". And when the Attorney "asked afterwards to the Ankara" and later also "to the Trapezunta (Trabzon)'s Procurateurs to make such a Nominal List", both on 2007 and on 2008, etc., "he didn't receive any Answer at all", from noone, until now (2013), observes the ECHR.

- So that "on 2010" the Turkish Attorney "droped" the case, claiming that "the File's data couldn't prove the allegations" of the Victim, who appealed to another Regional Court, obtaining a ruling attesting, on the contrary, the fact that "the acts of the (Turkish) Prime Minister (Erodgan)'s Bodyguards were opposed to the Law, as it has been sufficiently proved by several elements in the File of the case", (pointinng, in particular, to "the Medical Reports", as well as to "the Coherence between the description given by the Victim" on the incident "and the Wounds found".

- Nevertheless, almost .. 6 Years after the Facts (2007-2013), "the case is always PENDING inside (Turkey's) national legal system", but "not any new Information, concerning that procedure, wasn't ever given" to the ECHR, today's (12/2/2013) Strasbourg Judgement denounces...

=> Thus, "during more than 5 Years", the Turkish "Authorities haven't yet taken the Measures imposed by the circumstances of the case in order to conclude rapidly the Investigation", and ECHR "Reminds that it has ALREADY Judged, in SIMILAR CIRCUMSTANCES, .. that the (Turkish) National Authorities had to take all the positive Measures needed in order to act sufficiently earnest and with a reasonable diligence, so that the authors of Treatments contrary to Art. 3" of the PanEuropean Convention on Human Rights (which prohibits Torture and other Inhuman/Degrading Treatments), "couldn't enjoy a quasi-IMPUNITY", as EuroJudges denounced, citting several previous Judgements Condemning Turkey, f.ex. on 2007, 2010, etc., which notoriously remain still  Non-Implemented by Ankara until now (2/2013).
                                                                                                                                                                                                                   
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=> "In consequence, and taking into acount the Allegations" of the Victim, "as well as of the Ancienty of the Facts, it results that the (Turkish) Authorities did NOT take all the positive Measures that the circumstances of the case imposed to take in order to conclude the Investigation rapidly", ECHR denounced. "Therefore, .. ECHR decided not to take into account the exception of Non-Exhaustion of National Remedies (by the Applicant), invoqued by the (Turkish) Government", which is, thus, held to be the sole Responsible for all these Delays.

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- "Moreover", the Victim "faced (Turkish) Prime Ministers' BodyGuards, who not only Arrested him, but even Punched him Deliberately, as it results from the file of the case", ECHR denounced.

Indeed, the Victim "was Arrested on April 2007 .. by the (Turkish) Prime Ministers' BodyGuards", and "Nothing indicates that he might have behaved in a way which would justify the use of any kind of Force against him". But, "Medical Reports note the existence of an Oedema zone around his right Ear, an Erythrema Lesion at the right side of his Neck, and a sensitivity at the levels of the right zygomatic and parietal zones", which, "contrary to what claims the (Turkish) Government, confirm the description" of the incidents by the victim, while "nobody claims here that these Wounds might have been inflicted at an earlier period, before his arrest", ECHR observed.

As a matter of General Principle, "when a person is deprived of its Liberty, or, more generally, faces Security Forces' agents, the use of physical Force against him, without that having been necessary by its behavior, violates Human Dignity, and tantamounts to a Violation of the (Human) Right guaranteed by Article 3" of the PanEuropean Convention on Human Rights, ECHR reminded.

- "The (Turkish) State bears the Responsibility for the Wounds inflicted" to the Victim, found  ECHR, "taking into account all the elements submitted to its appreciation, and in the absence of any plausible explanation by the (Turkish) Government".

=> "These Acts have largely bypassed the framework of a normal arrest", since the Victim "was Submitted to an Inhuman and Degrading Treatment",  EuroJudges concluded.
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+ In addition, ECHR also found that the Turkish Authorities committed "Many Failings" in an Enquiry which "is still Pending 5 Years later", "without making any progress", since "even the (Turkish Prime Minister's) Bodyguards suspected to have ill-treated" the victim "were Not Identified  (etc) !

>>> Indeed, "when the victim observed the Incapacity of the (Turkish Judicial) Authorities, to obtain, more than 2 Years after the Facts, (not even) the Names of the (Turkish Prime MInister Erdogan's) BodyGuards, whom they denounced for punching him, then, he became aware of the Ineffectiveness of the legal remedies available" in Turkey, ECHR noted.         

                                                                           
- "In circumstances such as in this case, the prompt opening of an Enquiry and its Diligent conduct, are crucial in order to maintain the Public's Trust and its support to the Rule of Law, as well as for Preventing any apparent Tolerance of Illegal Acts or of Collusion in their perpetration", EuroJudges stressed, (reminding also various other cases concerning Impunity of Criminal acts committed by Agents of the Turkish State).

But, "the (Turkish) penal System, as it was applied  in this case, (of PM Erdogan), could Not .... prevent Illegal acts, as those denounced" by the Victim, i.e. Torture/Inhuman-Degrading Treatments, observed ECHR.
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+ Meanwhile, during all this time, in Parallel, a Prosecution against the Victim, accused by the Turkish Authorities for "Insulting the Prime Minister (Erdogan)", is always PENDING before the Turkish Courts, from 2007 up to 2013 included, ECHR points out in addition...
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=> In consequence, Unanimously, ECHR concluded that Turkey had "Violated Article 3" of the PanEuropean Convention on Human Rights" (which prohibits Torture and Inhuman/Degrading Treatments) "both in its Substantial, and in its Procedural aspects".

 - Therefore, ECHR condemned the Turkish Goverment to pay 17.000 € to the Victim, mainly for Moral Damages (12 Th.) but also for expenses (5 Th.)

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Such a crystal-clear condamnation, even at the Highest Level of the Turkish regime, for blatant and prolonged Impunity of Turkish State Agents' Violence against Citizens deprived of their Liberty simply for Criticizing the Turkish Government, obviously throws a Bleak light on the Numerous other Cases of Condemnations of the Turkish Authorities by ECHR for the manifold, often exceptionaly Serious Violations of Human Rights, such as Killings, "Missing" persons, Torture, Arbitrary Deprivation of Liberty, Usurpation or Destruction of Family Homes and Private Properties of Refugees brutally obliged too flee and still Hindered to Return to their Ancestral Land, Oppression of Freedom of Expression, jailings of Thousands of Elected Representatives, etc., which still remain Scandalously Pending for Execution inside CoE's Committee of Ministers in Strasbourg, (and are currently due to be examined anew by the Permanent Representatives/Ambassadors of the 47 COE Member Countries in Strasbourg on March 2013)....

+ Moreover, such Topical revelations at the very Top of the Turkish State a Decade since Ankara started its controversial and unpopular, but lucrative EU Negotiations (which cost almost a Billion € of grants to the Turkish Government each year from EU Taxpayers' Money, including in the current period of Restrictions of Funds even to the Poorest EU Citizens), naturally raise Critical Questions on the Failure of Expensive EU attempts of the Past to really "Change" Turkey into a Modern Democratic Country,
and inevitably provoke the worst Concerns about what would happen to the People abandoned to the Turkish regime (hastily set up less than 1 Century ago, immediately after the Armenian a.o. Genocides) if recent controversial Plans to Limit even more the Victims' Access to Strasbourg's PanEuropean EuroJudges, under Pretext that Ankara would check Violations by just another internal appeal f.ex. to a National Constitutional Court, etc., while everything reveals that, on the contrary, even blatant Impunity of Turkish State Agents' brutalities against defenseless Citizens continues until Today inside an ineffective Turkish System (comp. ECHR-noted pertinent Facts, cited Supra).