Published on 1 June 2026
SECOND SECTION
Application no. 19263/23
Ömer ATALAR against Türkiye
and 7 other applications
(see list appended)
communicated on 13 May 2026
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE
The applications concern disciplinary sanctions imposed on the applicants, civil servants at the material time, on account of their social media posts and/or public statements (for details regarding the nature of and reasons given for the sanctions, see the Appendix).
The domestic authorities considered that the impugned posts and statements of the applicants exceeded the boundaries of permissible criticism and that the disciplinary sanctions were appropriate and necessary given the duties incumbent upon the applicants by virtue of their civil servant status.
The applicants complained under Article 10 of the Convention that the disciplinary sanctions constituted a breach of their right to freedom of expression. In addition, invoking Article 6 § 1 of the Convention, the applicant in application no. 22311/24 complained about the length of the proceedings before the administrative courts, which lasted more than seven years and three months at two levels of jurisdiction.
QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES
Questions for all applications
1. Has there been an interference with the applicants’ right to freedom of expression, within the meaning of Article 10 § 1 of the Convention, on account of the disciplinary sanctions imposed upon them?
2. If so, was that interference prescribed by law and necessary in a democratic society within the meaning of Article 10 § 2 (see, for the general principles, Baka v. Hungary [GC], no. 20261/12, § 162, 23 June 2016)?
3. In particular, having regard to the content of the applicants’ impugned posts and statements, the context in which they were expressed, and the circumstances of each case, did the national courts, in their decisions, carry out a sufficient examination and a proper balancing of the interests at stake in the light of the criteria set out by the Court in cases concerning freedom of expression (Kula v. Turkey, no. 20233/06, §§ 44-52, 19 June 2018)?
Additional questions for application no. 22311/24
4. Did the applicant exhaust domestic remedies, as required by Article 35 § 1 of the Convention, as regards his complaint about the length of the proceedings?
5. If domestic remedies were exhausted, were the judicial proceedings brought by the applicant challenging his dismissal concluded within a “reasonable time” in accordance with Article 6 § 1 of the Convention (see Frydlender v. France [GC], no. 30979/96, § 43, ECHR 2000-VII; Ümmühan Kaplan v. Turkey, no. 24240/07, § 45, 20 March 2012; and Polyakh and Others v. Ukraine, nos. 58812/15 and 4 others, §§ 171-93, 17 October 2019)?
APPENDIX
No.
Application no.
Case name
Lodged on
Applicant
Year of Birth
Place of Residence
Nationality
Represented by
Sanctions Imposed
Alleged acts for which sanctions were imposed
1.
19263/23
Atalar v. Türkiye
20/04/2023
Ömer ATALAR
1972
Ankara
Turkish
Kerem ALTIPARMAK
Suspension of grade advancement for three years
Sharing and reposting political content on his social media account
2.
19865/23
Aktaş v. Türkiye
18/04/2023
Hatice Deniz AKTAŞ
1983
Gaziantep
Turkish
Bedia BORAN BULUT
Dismissal from civil service
Posts on social media, re-postings of news by national and regional media outlets, concerning “Hendek Operations”
3.
37462/23
Çavuşoğlu v. Türkiye
06/09/2023
Hamit ÇAVUŞOĞLU
1972
Ankara
Turkish
1/30 of salary deduction
Alleged defamatory statements made against the then Prime Minister
4.
5272/24
Ok v. Türkiye
31/01/2024
Serap OK
1975
Şırnak
Turkish
Bedia BORAN BULUT
Suspension of grade advancement for one year
Wearing attire during the “Newruz” celebrations, considered to symbolise the PKK and posting photographs in such clothing on Facebook
5.
5273/24
Kaplan v. Türkiye
31/01/2024
Nizam KAPLAN
1977
Şırnak
Turkish
Bedia BORAN BULUT
Suspension of grade advancement for one year
Wearing attire during the “Newruz” celebrations, considered to symbolise the PKK and posting photographs in such clothing on Facebook
6.
22311/24
Üzümcü v. Türkiye
29/07/2024
Levent ÜZÜMCÜ
1972
Istanbul
Turkish
Pınar GÜRSOY KILINÇ
Dismissal from civil service
Alleged defamatory statements made against the then Prime Minister, insulting a part of the population
7.
10122/25
Kara v. Türkiye
10/03/2025
Mehmet KARA
1985
Şırnak
Turkish
Gürgin BABAT
Dismissal from civil service
Sharing and reposting political content on his social media account
8.
11898/25
Kaval v. Türkiye
21/03/2025
Halil İbrahim KAVAL
1985
Diyarabakır
Turkish
Öztürk TÜRKDOĞAN
Dismissal from civil service
Sharing and reposting political content on his social media account