The First Chamber of the Brazilian Supreme Court on Tuesday unanimously refused to extradite Turkish businessman Yakup Sagar, an opponent of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government, which accuses him of belonging to the Hizmet movement.
The highest judicial body in the country denied the request submitted by the Government of Turkey, considering that “part of the allegations” against Sagar are “clearly politically motivated”.
He also stated that “it is not proven” that Hizmet, created by the Turkish cleric Fethullah Gülen, is a “terrorist” organization, as the authorities of that country claim.
Sagar is accused of belonging, along with 83 others, to that movement, which in July 2016 “would have attempted an armed coup against the Turkish Government, which had current President Erdogan as prime minister,” the Supreme Court said in a note.
Last November, Supreme Justice Alexandre de Moraes, in charge of the case, ordered Sagar prison for extradition purposes, but after questioning, he imposed only a series of precautionary measures on him.
The businessman, owner of a clothing firm in Sao Paulo, has been living in Brazil since December 2016, with his wife and daughter. In addition, he obtained refugee status earlier this year.
According to the Turkish authorities, Sagar would be responsible for raising funds that would allegedly serve to finance Hizmet's “criminal activities”, including “the shelling of Turkish State institutions”.
However, at Tuesday's hearing, Judge De Moraes stressed the “political” nature of part of the accusations and affirmed that the court does not endorse the extradition of a citizen “if there is a risk that he will be tried by exceptional judges”.
“One of the pillars of the rule of law is the independence of the judiciary, which must be autonomous and free from pressure, coercion and persecution,” he said.
In his vote, De Moraes noted that “the Turkish Government arrested 2,745 judges and prosecutors for alleged crimes against the government itself, serving as psychological coercion on the other professionals who remained in office.”
“Clearly and shamefully, the (Turkish) judiciary has been suffering an attack on its autonomy and independence. The impartial judge is the security of the people against state arbitrariness, and, in this case, there is no possibility that it will be so,” he said.
In addition to denying the request for extradition, De Moraes also revoked the precautionary measures previously taken against Sagar.
(With information from EFE)
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