CASE OF ÖZÇAYIR AND ÇİÇEK v. TURKEY
Violation of Article 5 - Right to liberty and security (Article 5-4 - Review of lawfulness of detention)
Ledi Bianku;Stéphanie Mourou-Vikström
4. The applicants were born in 1982 and 1981 respectively. 5. On 22 April 2006 upon receipt of intelligence reports that the youth branch of the PKK would be holding a meeting in the premises of a cooperative, the police officers, under the orders of the magistrates’ court, conducted a search in the premises of the co-operative of which the applicants were members. The police seized several documents and CDs that contained propaganda materials related to the youth branch of the PKK. 6. On the same day the applicants were taken into custody on suspicion of being members of a terrorist organisation. 7. On 24 April 2006 the Urfa Magistrates’ Court ordered the applicants’ detention on remand. 8. On 27 April 2006 and 28 April 2006, respectively, the applicants filed objections against their pre-trial detention. The courts rejected their request on the basis of the case-file, without holding a hearing. 9. During the pre-trial stage, the magistrates’ court continued to examine, by virtue of Article 108 of Law no. 5271, the necessity of applicants’ continued detention every thirty days on the basis of the case file, without holding an oral hearing. The applicants also filed objections against their continued pre-trial detention, namely on 15 June, 12 July, 17 July, 1 August and 17 October 2006. All these objections were examined on the basis of the case file and were rejected by the domestic courts. 10. On 10 October 2006 the Diyarbakır Public Prosecutor filed an indictment with the Diyarbakır Assize Court charging the applicants, along with twenty three other persons, with aiding and abetting a terrorist organisation under Article 314 of the Criminal Code (Law no. 5237). 11. On 30 November 2006 the Diyarbakır Assize Court held its first hearing and the applicants appeared before the court. On the same day, the applicants were released pending trial. 12. On 4 November 2008 the Diyarbakır Assize Court acquitted the applicants of the charges against them. In the absence of an appeal, this judgment became final on 12 November 2008.