Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights made a judgment in the case of Perincek v Switzerland.

The judgment says there had been a violation of Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention on Human Rights, thus the petition filed by Switzerland was rejected.

Being aware of the great importance attributed by the Armenian community to the question whether those mass deportations and massacres were to be regarded as genocide, the European Court of Human Rights held that the dignity of the victims and the dignity and identity of modernday Armenians were protected by Article 8 (right to respect for private life) of the Convention. The Court therefore had to strike a balance between two Convention rights – the right to freedom of expression and the right to respect for private life –, taking into account the specific circumstances of the case and the proportionality between the means used and the aim sought to be achieved.

In 2008, a Swiss court had convicted Turkish ultranationalist politician Dogu Perincek for denying the Armenian Genocide. In December 2013, the ECHR had ruled in favor of Perincek’s lawsuit that was filed against Switzerland. Subsequently, the Government of Switzerland petitioned that the Dogu Perincek case be referred for a review by the ECHR Grand Chamber.

Separately, Armenia had petitioned to the ECHR, and it now acts as a third party in this case, whose ECHR Grand Chamber hearing was held on January 28. Armenia was represented at this hearing by renowned attorneys Geoffrey Robertson and Amal Clooney.

Dogu Perincek is chairman of the left-wing Patriotic—formerly Workers’—Party of Turkey. In addition, he heads the Turkish ultranationalist Talaat Pasha organization, which actively fights against the Armenian Genocide’s recognition in Europe.