ISTANBUL — Turkish police officers fired volleys of tear gas at protesters who tried to enter a cordoned-off park near Istanbul’s landmark Taksim Square on Saturday, hours after the city’s governor warned that the demonstration was illegal and that participants would be dispersed. A few thousand people converged on the square, with the aim of entering Gezi Park, whose redevelopment [...] → Read the full article…
Turkish police fired volleys of tear gas at protesters who tried to enter a cordoned-off park near Istanbul’s landmark Taksim Square on Saturday, hours after the city’s governor warned the demonstration was illegal and participants would be dispersed. A few thousand people converged on the square, with the aim of entering Gezi Park, whose redevelopment plans sparked anger and morphed [...] → Read the full article…
We would like to extend our sincere solidarity with our fellow lawyers and legal workers fighting for the rights of all those who have been detained, arrested, and violently attacked for peaceful protest in the last few weeks. The National Lawyers Guild (NLG) is closely following the situation in Turkey. We are aware of the extent of death, injury, and [...] → Read the full article…
After the Gezi Park occupation was dispersed, dozens of neighborhood forums popped up around Istanbul where people get together to discuss a variety of issues. I’ve been attending these neighborhood forums, which are are organized in an “agora” format where speakers line up and take turns to speak. While media attention remains on the frequent Taksim Square demonstrations, the forums [...] → Read the full article…
It all changed so swiftly. The demand and price of gas masks, protective eyewear, and helmets rocketed in Istanbul. Not only protestors, but journalists, too, contributed to the rush. Hardware store clerks were quick studies, explaining to journalists which masks offer you a better line of sight when taking pictures, and describing the problem of speaking through a mask when [...] → Read the full article…
Our thanks goes out to Susan Sarandon, who has offered her generous support to Amnesty’s on-going campaign to protect freedom of expression and assembly and end police violence in Turkey. She has helped support our petition drive through twitter and now has written an open letter calling on others to lend their support as well. In her letter, she writes: [...] → Read the full article…
Istanbul, June 20, 2013–Two journalists were detained and one newsroom raided this week as Turkish authorities continued a broad crackdown on dissent, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the government to halt its obstruction of journalists seeking to cover the protests that have swept the nation. “Turkish authorities are at a crossroads. They can follow [...] → Read the full article…
Istanbul, June 17, 2013–Anti-press violence intensified in Istanbul on Sunday as police aggressively sought to obstruct reporters covering demonstrations against the government, according to news reports and CPJ interviews. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities to halt their harassment of the press. “The heart of Turkey has become an epicenter of official violence and obstruction of the press,” [...] → Read the full article…
ISTANBUL – Everyone who enters Istanbul’s Taksim Square, the heart of nearly 20-day-long protests against the government, will be considered a member or a supporter of a terrorist organization, Turkey’s European Union minister said in a televised interview late last night. “I request our citizens who supported the protests until today kindly to return to their homes,” Egemen Bağış said [...] → Read the full article…
ISTANBUL — After 18 days of antigovernment demonstrations that presented a broad rebuke to the country’s leadership, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered the riot police to storm the center of the protest movement in Gezi Park on Saturday evening, setting off a night of chaos in downtown Istanbul. As protesters fled the tear gas and water cannons, the police [...] → Read the full article…