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ECHR Grand Chamber holding hearing on Swiss govtâ€™s appeal against judgment on PerinÃ§ekâ€™s case - PHOTO

ECHR Grand Chamber holding hearing on Swiss govtâ€™s appeal against judgment on PerinÃ§ekâ€™s case - <span style="color: red;">PHOTO

28 January 2015 10:51 (UTC +04:00)

Perinçek’s is represented by attorneys Mehmet Cengiz and Christian Laurent Pech, Turkey by professor Stefan Talmon, Switzerland by Daniel Türer, Armenia by Geoffrey Robertson and Ms. Amal Clooney.

Members of the Turkish Constitutional Court and attorneys of the Council of State of France are also attending the hearing. Armenians are holding a rally on one side of the street outside the ECHR building and Turks on the other side. The street is cordoned off by police.

Turkey’s Workers’ Party (Ä°P) Chairman DoÄŸu Perinçek has been put under police surveillance for his description of the Armenian genocide as "an international lie" at a demonstration in Lausanne on 25 July 2005. After being released only with the interference of Turkey, Perinçek was sentenced to 3-month imprisonment under the court judgment, but his sentence was commuted to a fine. In June 2008, DoÄŸu Perinçek appealed to the European Court of Human Rights as Switzerland restricted his freedom of expression. The ECHR sustained his appeal on 17 December 2013. In March 2014, the Swiss government filed an appeal against the decision of the ECHR. Armenia and France were involved in the process as well. Switzerland's appeal will be clarified by the Grand Chamber of the ECHR. The Chamber’s decision to be announced after two months is final and no appeal lies against it.