The Council of Europe closely monitoring Greece's failure to implement ECtHR rulings
ABTTF President: "We ask the Committee of Ministers to consider opening infringement proceedings against our country for failure to comply with its contractual obligations, should our country fail to take concrete steps on this issue by the December meeting."
Christophe Poirel, Director of Human Rights of the Council of Europe, and the Enforcement Division of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) visited Athens on 8-9 November 2023 to discuss the non-enforcement of ECtHR judgments against Greece.
The delegation held talks with the Greek authorities on the non-implementation of ECtHR judgments in a number of cases closely examined by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, including the "Bekir Usta et al." group of cases concerning the Turkish Union of Xanthi, the Cultural Association of Turkish Women of Rodopi Prefecture and the Youth Minority Association of Evros Prefecture.
On the issue, the President of the European Federation of Turks of Western Thrace (ABTTF) Halit Habip Oglu said: "The recent visit of the delegation, which included the ECtHR's Decision Enforcement Division, to our country shows that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe is closely monitoring the implementation of ECtHR decisions concerning our associations. The fact that the visit took place before the meeting of the Committee of Ministers in Strasbourg on 5-7 December 2023, where the Bekir Usta et al. case group will also be considered, demonstrates the importance that the Council of Europe attaches to this issue. Despite all the decisions and warnings of the Committee of Ministers and ignoring the European Convention on Human Rights to which it is a party, our country has insisted on not applying the ECHR judgments against our trade unions for more than 15 years. As the ABTTF, we will continue our initiatives before the Council of Europe for the urgent implementation of the ECtHR decisions concerning our unions with respect to international law. We ask the Committee of Ministers to consider opening infringement proceedings against our country for failure to comply with its contractual obligations, should our country fail to take concrete action on this matter by the December meeting."
