Turkey to expel 10 envoys over Kavala,says Prez Erdogan

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has ordered his foreign ministry to declare 10 ambassadors from western countries 'persona non grata' for calling for the release of philanthropist Osman Kavala. Persona non grata can remove diplomatic status and often results in expulsion or withdrawal of recognition of envoys. Osman Kavala, 64, is a Turkish businessman, publisher and activist who has been detained for more than four years despite having never been convicted of a crime. He was acquitted last year in connection to nationwide protests in 2013, but then rearrested in connection with the attempted military coup in 2016.

Earlier in a joint statement, the ambassadors of Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Finland, New Zealand and the United States called for a just and speedy resolution to Kavala's case and for his urgent release. "The continuing delays in his trial, including by merging different cases and creating new ones after a previous acquittal, cast a shadow over respect for democracy, the rule of law and transparency in the Turkish judiciary system," the statement read. "Noting the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights(ECHR) on the matter, we call for Turkey to secure his urgent release," it added. The ECHR called for Kavala's immediate release two years ago, finding that there was no reasonable suspicion that he had committed an offence and accusing Turkey of detaining him for the purpose of silencing him.

The Council of Europe, the 47-member human rights body which drafted and now upholds the European Convention of Human Rights, said it would begin infringement proceedings against Turkey if Kavala wasn't released. In response to the joint statement, President Erdogan told a crowd on Saturday that the foreign ambassadors "cannot dare to come to the Turkish foreign ministry and give orders".

Seven of the ambassadors represent fellow NATO members and their expulsion threatens to create the most significant rift between Turkey and the West in Erdogan's 19 years in power. Six of them belong to EU members, and the European Parliament President David Sassoli tweeted: "The expulsion of ten ambassadors is a sign of the authoritarian drift of the Turkish government. We will not be intimidated. Freedom for Osman Kavala."