Confiscating Without Expropriating

Confiscating without expropriation   could be explained as the government agencies’ interventions on private properties which leads to a decrease on property owners’ lands without being paid. Expropriation is a legal process in Turkish Law since the public welfare requires it, those public welfares could be a demand for a school or a green area etc. At the same time, private property is being highly protected by both the Turkish Constitution and the European Human Rights Act which Turkey is a signatory. Therefore, government agencies – usually municipalities or city councils – are required to pay the market value to the owner, whereas they usually refrain. In these cases, bearing in mind that Turkish Constitutional Court had superseded the article which stipulated a time bar for 20 years to sue, now the citizens are able to ask for a compensation from the relevant government agencies for their confiscated lands without concerning any time limitation.