SECOND SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 61361/11
Ümmügül KURTULUŞ and others
against Turkey
The European Court of Human Rights (Second Section), sitting on 13 March 2018 as a Committee composed of:
Ledi Bianku, President,
Nebojša Vučinić,
Jon Fridrik Kjølbro, judges,
and Hasan Bakırcı, Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above application lodged on 29 August 2011,
Having regard to the formal declarations accepting a friendly settlement of the case,
Having deliberated, decides as follows:
FACTS AND PROCEDURE
The applicants, Özlem Büyükdede, Hanife Duyar, Bülent Kurtuluş, Ümmügül Kurtuluş, Ramadan Kurtuluş and Sibel Yıldız are Turkish nationals who were born in 1984, 1980, 1973, 1954, 1948 and 1976 respectively, and live in İzmir. They were represented before the Court by Ms Nezahat Paşa, a lawyer practising in İzmir. The Turkish Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent.
The applicants complained under Article 2 of the Convention about the death of their close relative Özcan Kurtuluş in a police station.
On 5 January 2018 the Court received the following declaration from the Government:
“The Government regret the occurrence of individual cases of death in police custody caused by failures to protect life, as in the circumstances of the present case, notwithstanding existing Turkish legislation and the resolve of the Government to prevent such failures.
The Government admit that the death of the applicants’ relative resulting from the failure to provide protective measures and the investigation conducted into the death did not meet the standards enshrined in Article 2 of the Convention. The Government undertake to issue appropriate instructions and adopt all necessary measures to ensure that the right to life – including the obligation to carry out effective investigations – is respected in the future.
The Government of Turkey declare that they offer to pay jointly to the applicants Özlem Büyükdede, Hanife Duyar, Bülent Kurtuluş, Ümmügül Kurtuluş, Ramadan Kurtuluş and Sibel Yıldız, with a view to securing a friendly settlement of the above-mentioned case pending before the European Court of Human Rights, EUR 20,000 (twenty thousand euros) to cover any and all non-pecuniary damage, plus any tax that may be chargeable.
This sum will be converted into Turkish liras at the rate applicable on the date of payment, and will be payable within three months from the date of notification of the decision taken by the Court to strike the case out of its list of cases. In the event of failure to pay this sum within the said three-month period, the Government undertake to pay simple interest on them, from expiry of that period until settlement, at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points. The payment will constitute the final resolution of the case.”
On 29 March 2017 the Court received the following declaration from the applicants:
“I, Nezahat Paşa, note that the Government of Turkey are prepared to pay jointly to the applicants Özlem Büyükdede, Hanife Duyar, Bülent Kurtuluş, Ümmügül Kurtuluş, Ramadan Kurtuluş and Sibel Yıldız, with a view to securing a friendly settlement of the above-mentioned case pending before the European Court of Human Rights, EUR 20,000 (twenty thousand euros) to cover any and all non-pecuniary damage, plus any tax that may be chargeable.
This sum will be converted into Turkish liras at the rate applicable on the date of payment, and will be payable within three months from the date of notification of the decision taken by the Court to strike the case out of its list of cases. From the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amount at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.
Having consulted the applicants, I would inform you that they accept the proposal and waive any further claims against Turkey in respect of the facts giving rise to this application. They declare that this constitutes a final resolution of the case.”
THE LAW
The Court takes note of the friendly settlement reached between the parties. It is satisfied that the settlement is based on respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and its Protocols and finds no reasons to justify a continued examination of the application. In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the case out of the list.
For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,
Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases in accordance with Article 39 of the Convention.
Done in English and notified in writing on 5 April 2018.
Hasan BakırcıLedi Bianku
Deputy RegistrarPresident
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy