02 December 2019
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"In today’s Chamber judgment in the case of Mustafa v. Bulgaria (application no. 1230/17) the European Court of Human Rights held, unanimously, that there had been:
a violation of Article 6 § 1 (right to a fair trial) of the European Convention on Human Rights
Mr Mustafa, a civilian who had no links to the army, was tried and convicted by military courts for an ordinary offence because one of the other defendants in the case was serving in the army at the time it was committed. Mr Mustafa argued that those courts were neither independent nor impartial.
The Court found in particular that Mr Mustafa’s doubts about the independence and impartiality of the military courts could be regarded as objectively justified."
Press release: A civilian tried by military courts for an ordinary criminal offence did not have a fair trial (pdf)
Judgment: Mustafa v. Bulgaria (French only, pdf)
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