Published on 15 December 2025
SECOND SECTION
Applications nos. 47822/21 and 47846/21
Ayşe Merva AYTEMÜR against Türkiye
and Nazan DÜNDAR against Türkiye
lodged on 17 September 2021 and 17 September 2021 respectively
communicated on 25 November 2025
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE
The applications concern administrative fines of 392 Turkish liras (TRY) (approximately 44 euros (EUR) at the material time), imposed on each applicant on 11 September 2020 for their participation in unauthorised press statements held outside the areas officially designated for such purposes, pursuant to section 32 of the Misdemeanours Act (Law No. 5326).
The relevant Magistrates’ Courts dismissed the applicants’ objections to these fines on the grounds that they had made the press statements despite being warned that such actions required prior authorisation. Subsequently, the Constitutional Court examined the applicants’ complaints under the right to freedom of assembly and declared them inadmissible as being manifestly ill-founded, holding that they had not substantiated their claims.
Relying on Articles 10 and 11 of the Convention, the applicants complain that the administrative fines imposed on them constituted a breach of their right to freedom of assembly. Invoking Article 6 § 1 of the Convention, the applicants also complained of an alleged lack of reasoning in the decisions of the Magistrates’ Courts.
QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES
1. In the light of the Court’s case law, has there been an interference with the applicants’ right to freedom of assembly, within the meaning of Article 11 § 1 of the Convention, on account of the administrative fines imposed upon them (see Yılmaz Yıldız and Others v. Turkey, no. 4524/06, §§ 33-34, 14 October 2014)?
2. If so, was that interference prescribed by law and necessary in terms of Article 11 § 2?
3. Having regard to the circumstances of each case, did the national courts carry out in their decisions 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 assembly (see Yılmaz Yıldız and Others, cited above, §§ 42-47; Akarsubaşı v. Turkey, no. 70396/11, §§ 43-46, 21 July 2015, and Dinçer v. Turkey, no. 17843/11, §§ 38-42, 16 January 2018)?
APPENDIX
List of cases:
No.
Application no.
Case name
Lodged on
Applicant
Year of Birth
Place of Residence
Nationality
Represented by
1.
47822/21
Aytemür v. Türkiye
17/09/2021
Ayşe Merva AYTEMÜR
1983
Ankara
Turkish
Abdulcelil AKIN
2.
47846/21
Dündar v. Türkiye
17/09/2021
Nazan DÜNDAR
1977
Mersin
Turkish
Abdulcelil AKIN