Mass protests are continuing in Turkey. What you need to know

The Turkish opposition continues to hold protests in Istanbul in support of the mayor of Ekrem Imamoglu. The politician was arrested in the case of an organization engaged in corruption, bribery, bribery and the promotion of terrorist activities. Why this led to political unrest is in the Izvestia article.

Arrest and start of protests

• On March 23, Imamoglu was scheduled to become the presidential candidate of the largest opposition party, the Republican People's Party (CHP), in the party primaries. He was supposed to be Erdogan's main rival in the next presidential election in 2028. However, on March 19, the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor's Office announced the detention of Imamoglu in the case of an organization engaged in corruption, bribery, bribery and assistance to terrorist activities. The anti-corruption operation concerns the holding of city tenders, as well as clarifying the details of the interaction of opposition officials with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party. The opposition leader denies the charges. At the same time, he promised his supporters that he did not intend to give up under pressure from the authorities.

• On March 22, Imamoglu testified for five hours, and on March 23, the court ordered the arrest of the oppositionist. Immediately after the verdict, a message appeared on the RNP's social media: "No despair! The fight continues!" The next day, the chairman of the CHP, Ozgur Ozel, announced that Imamoglu had been chosen as a candidate in the primaries held on Sunday: almost 15 million delegates voted for him.

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• Istanbul University had previously revoked the mayor's diploma. The Prosecutor General's Office, which sent the request, suspected possible violations during the transfer of Imamoglu to Istanbul from a university in Northern Cyprus, since Turkey at that time did not officially recognize the educational institution on the island.

• This cancellation prevents the politician from being nominated for the post of president, since the country's Constitution allows only persons with higher education to run for the post of head of state. However, Imamoglu is still the only candidate for the primaries from the opposition CHP and is considered the main opponent of Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

• The case against the mayor of Istanbul has led to mass protests, despite the fact that the authorities have tightened security measures on a number of central streets and banned any rallies and demonstrations in the city until Sunday, March 23. Most people gather in the largest cities of Turkey — Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir. The demonstrations marked the largest wave of protests in Turkey in more than a decade. Security forces use tear gas to "maintain public order."

What is known about Ekrem Imamoglu

• In 2014, he won the election and became mayor of the Istanbul suburb of Beylikduzu, and at the end of 2018, he was nominated as a candidate for mayor of Istanbul. On March 31, 2019, he beat former Prime Minister Binali Yildirim in the elections. However, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for the annulment of the election results, claiming systemic violations. After several recounts, the CEC finally recognized Imamoglu as mayor.

• In his post, Imamoglu revealed the facts of waste of the city budget. According to his estimate, 60% of it goes to 28 private non-transparent companies. After that, in May, the CEC annulled the election results and set new ones for June 23. However, Imamoglu won again. After that, the politician called idiots those who canceled the results of the first elections, for which he was accused of insulting members of the Turkish Central Election Commission.

• Then in December 2022, Imamoglu was sentenced to two years and seven months in prison, as well as a ban on political activity on charges of insulting government officials. As a result, this decision provoked a large-scale rally. All the key opposition forces of the country participated in it. This verdict gave the opposition leader extra points as a likely rival to the current president.

• The verdict was appealed. It is currently under consideration by the Court of Appeal. Since the beginning of this year, several more investigations have been launched against Imamoglu.

The reaction of the authorities

• Recep Tayyip Erdogan is accused of wanting to remove his main competitor from the political race. At the same time, the authorities' goal may also be to bring Istanbul back under the control of the presidential Justice and Development Party.

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• However, the country's leader himself, assessing the situation around Imamoglu's detention, stated attempts by the opposition to exert political pressure on the police and justice. He stressed that the Cabinet of Ministers does not have time to squabble with the opposition, because it is engaged in solving the country's problems. The administration of the head of state, in turn, declared unfounded slander against Erdogan against the background of the situation with the detention of Imamoglu.

• Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc also called for not initiating street protests after Imamoglu's detention. He noted that this situation has nothing to do with Erdogan.

Arrests and fall of the Lira

• The opposition calls on people to come out to mass protests. On March 22, the protesters shouted anti-government slogans and threw objects towards the police. The crowd set off firecrackers and fireworks, and also shone laser pointers in the direction of law enforcement officers. In response, police used pepper spray and tear gas to disperse the crowd and push back hundreds of protesters.

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• Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on the morning of March 22 that more than 340 suspects had been detained during evening protests in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Antalya and other Turkish cities. However, 16 police officers were injured. More than 90 people were also detained for provocative posts on social networks, calls to take to the streets, attempts to sow fear and panic among citizens, inciting hatred and hostility.

• The Turkish currency has reacted negatively to the political instability in the country. On the morning of March 19, the value of the lira fell by more than 10% against major world currencies. The Turkish stock market has collapsed by almost 7%.

• If the court softens its decision on the policy, it will give additional points to Imamoglu. Otherwise, the authorities will be accused of using undemocratic methods of dealing with rivals.