Istanbul saw a huge turnout of demonstrators calling for the release of Ekrem Imamoglu, the city’s imprisoned mayor. Pressure on the nation’s longtime leader, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has increased as a result of the rally organized by the Republican People’s Party (CHP), Turkey’s largest opposition party. This is the most recent in a series of rallies that have led to hundreds of detentions. Considered a major adversary of Erdogan, Imamoglu was arrested on March 19 of this month on suspicion of “terrorism” and “corruption.”
Mayor’s arrest sparks wide protests
Despite assembly prohibitions, police crackdowns, and legal prosecution by authorities, Imamoglu’s arrest has provoked widespread protests, despite the government’s insistence that the judiciary is independent and free from political involvement as justification for the mayor’s detention.
CHP leader Ozgur Ozel informed demonstrators, “They have arrested hundreds of our youths, thousands of our children, and detained hundreds of them.”
Nearly 1,900 people have been held since March 19, according to Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, who made the announcement Thursday. On Friday, pro-government media announced that public prosecutors had asked for up to three years in prison for 74 of the detainees. There were no additional arrests recorded, and police stayed away from the gathering on Saturday.
Opposition demands immediate release of Imamoglu
Imamoglu and other political prisoners, such as Selahattin Demirtas, a former presidential contender and the founder of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party, or DEM, should be released immediately, Ozel demanded.
Hours after his official arrest, Mayor Imamoglu emerged victorious in a symbolic primary last Sunday to represent the CHP in the 2028 presidential race, which is expected to happen sooner. He has done well in recent polls against Erdogan, and the president was dealt a serious blow in 2019 when he was elected mayor of Turkey’s biggest city.
Ankara Mayor Masur Yavas, another well-known CHP figure, and Dilek Imamoglu, the imprisoned mayor’s wife, were among the other speakers at Saturday’s event.
