During a press conference in Spain, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey confronted a journalist from the Spanish newspaper El Pais after taking offense at a question regarding the imprisonment of Osman Kavala and Selahattin Demirtaş. The journalist’s question highlighted the European Court of Human Rights’ (ECHR) rulings being overlooked.
Erdoğan responded by asserting that Turkey is a rule of law state where judicial decisions are made independently: “In our state governed by the rule of law, it is the judiciary that makes the decisions regarding the individuals you mentioned.” He expressed his disturbance over the journalist’s portrayal of Kavala and Demirtaş, mentioning that one of the individuals was responsible for the deaths of over a hundred young people and for terrorizing the southeast region of Turkey, causing further deaths.
The Turkish president reproached the journalist’s non-verbal reaction during the exchange, stating, “Don’t shake your head. Don’t shake your head, look, I continue my work resolutely.” He further clarified, “Whether it’s Osman Kavala, Selahattin Demirtaş, or anyone else, we will implement what the laws prescribe. We fulfill what the law commands, and that is what is being done. You probably don’t live in Turkey. We live in Turkey. These are steps taken seriously for maintaining peace in the region, and it will continue this way.”
The interaction and the press conference ended shortly after this exchange, highlighting a tense moment between Erdoğan and the international press.
