Date: 31 March 2005
The applicant is İlkay Adali, a Turkish national, born in 1944 and living in Lefkoşa, in northern Cyprus, “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” (“TRNC”).
The applicant is the wife of Kutlu Adalı, who was shot dead in front of their home in the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” (“TRNC”) on 6 July 1996. Mr Adalı was a well-known writer who had written and published articles strongly criticising the policies and practices of the Turkish Government and the "TRNC" authorities. He argued that Cyprus should not be divided and that Turkish and Greek Cypriots should live in a united republic based on a pluralist democratic system. The applicant contended that her husband had received several death threats because of his articles and political opinions.
The applicant alleged that Turkish and or "TRNC" agents were involved in her husband’s murder and that the investigation launched by the "TRNC" authorities into his death was inadequate. She further complained that, following the death of her husband, she was subjected to harassment, intimidation and discrimination by the "TRNC" authorities. For example, she claimed that she was followed by plain-clothes policemen, that her telephone calls and correspondence were monitored, that she received threatening phone calls and that her telephone and fax lines were sometimes disconnected. She also alleged that a former State agent, a Professor Çağlar, had warned her that she would be assassinated if she won her case before the European Court of Human Rights. She further complained that she was refused a permit to attend a meeting held on 20 June 1997 in southern Cyprus.
In addition, she submitted that, because of the failure to conduct a prompt, thorough, impartial and effective investigation of the circumstances of her husband's murder, she was denied effective access to the courts to determine her civil right to compensation for her husband's murder. She maintained that the courts in the "TRNC" were not sufficiently independent from Government influence to make it likely that they would act independently and impartially considering the particular circumstances of her case.
(from the official press-release prepared by the Registry Office of the European Court of Human Rights)
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