The challenge threatens to tighten in Türkiye after the imprisonment of the popular opposition mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, with new calls to demonstrate Monday, March 24 across the country.
More than 1,130 people have been arrested from the start on Wednesday, the wave of protest, the authorities who prohibited any gathering in the three largest cities in the country on Monday.
As of mid-day on Monday, students braved the ban and began to protest in Istanbul and Ankara in support of Mr. Imamoglu, principal opponent of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was officially dismissed on Sunday.
The elected official, accused of “Corruption”what he refutes, spent his first night in prison in Silivri, on the edge of Istanbul, when his party was investing him candidate for the next presidential election, scheduled for 2028. ” I am here. I wear a white shirt and you will not be able to dirty it. My wrist is solid and you will not be able to twist it. I will not go back a thumb. I will win this war ”he said in a message transmitted by his lawyers.
The Republican People's Party (CHP, Social Democrat), the first opposition force, had maintained a primary on Sunday to which Mr. Imamoglu was the only candidate. The party claims that fifteen million voters took part in the vote having appointed the elected official imprisoned.
The arrest on Wednesday of Mr. Imamoglu sparked a unpublished wave of protest in Turkey since the Grand Movement of Contestation of Gezi, who had left Taksim Square in 2013. Redesman has taken place since Wednesday in at least 55 of the 81 Turkish provinces, more than two thirds of the country, according to a count of the France-Presse (AFP). On Sunday, tens of thousands of people again invaded the surroundings of the town hall of Istanbul, where clashes broke out with the police.
According to the Minister of the Interior, 123 police officers were injured – and an indefinite number of demonstrators. At least ten journalists – including an AFP photographer – were arrested on Monday at dawn at their home in Istanbul and Izmir (West), the third city in the country, reported the Turkish human rights association MLSA.
“Affairs to democracy”
“The imprisonment of the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, as well as many other personalities constitute serious attacks on democracy”deplored French diplomacy on Sunday evening, which had already condemned his arrest on Wednesday.
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Germany, which houses the largest Turkish community on the foreigner, has condemned incarceration “Absolutely unacceptable” of the mayor of Istanbul. “We observe with great concern the evolution of the situation in Türkiye at the moment”the Steffen Hébestreit, the spokesperson for Chancellor Olaf Scholz, told the press calling on Monday, calling Ankara to Ankara ” clarify [la situation] very quickly and in a very transparent way ”. A demonstration brought together more than a thousand people on Sunday in Berlin, local media reported.
For its part, the European Commission urged Turkey to “Respect democratic values”. “We want Turkey to remain anchored in Europe, but it involves a clear commitment to democratic standards and practices”said a spokesman for the commission on Monday, Guillaume Mercier.
In addition to Mr. Imamoglu, nearly 50 co -accused were also placed in detention on Sunday for “Corruption” And “Terrorism”according to the Turkish press. Among them are two mayors of the arrondissement of Istanbul, also members of the CHP. The two elected officials were dismissed and one of them, accused of “Terrorism”was replaced by an administrator appointed by the State, the authorities announced.
The Minister of the Turkish economy, Mehmet Simsek, wanted to sweep away on Sunday evening rumors of resignation. “We are at work and will continue to take all the measures necessary for the proper functioning of the markets. Please don't believe false news “he wrote on X.
Sunday evening, the social network X announced that the Turkish authorities had requested the blocking of more than 700 accounts.
Source: Lemonde