Turkish family minister files lawsuit against Netherlands over deportation

ANKARA

Family Minister Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya has filed a lawsuit against the Netherlands over her deportation from the country after she was barred from entering the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam last month to campaign for the April 16 referendum on charter changes. 

According to the BBC’s Turkish service, Ejder Köse, a Turkish-origin lawyer in the Netherlands, told Dutch daily Algemeen Dagblad that he applied to the Rotterdam court for a lawsuit on April 7 upon the minister’s assignment.

Algemeen Dagblad reported that the basis for Kaya’s deportation by the Dutch authorities was “not clear in legal terms.” 

Köse claimed that the minister was unlawfully declared persona-non-grata, while Rotterdam Mayor Ahmed Abutalib’s deportation order and statements on the issue “did not comply with the law.”

Kaya previously stated that the Dutch authorities refused to abide by diplomatic rules, although she held a diplomatic passport.

However, the Dutch government still remains insistent on the minister’s deportation.

According to the Algemeen Dagblad report, the Dutch government sent a letter to parliament noting that Kaya did not have any special status according to international law, unlike heads of the state, government officials, foreign ministers and diplomatic representatives specifically accredited by the Netherlands. 

The Dutch Foreign Ministry also denies that the deportation decision violated the Vienna Convention.

The diplomatic tension between the two countries escalated after the Dutch authorities refused to allow Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Kaya to enter the country to campaign for the April 16 referendum on constitutional amendments on March 11.

The flight permit for Çavuşoğlu was previously canceled, while Rotterdam police barred Kaya’s entrance to the consulate building on the same day.

Kaya was declared persona-non-grata and deported to Germany with a police escort late on March 12.