The present situation in Turkey illustrates perfectly the lack of freedom that exists within the country. Peaceful Turkish citizens have been killed, beaten, wounded, and arrested, just for voicing their objections to Erdogan’s government. “The police’s record on abusive policing has been surpassed as they use tear gas and water cannon fire against peaceful demonstrators,” said Emma Sinclair-Webb, senior Turkey researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The government’s failure to respect the right to protest and to speak out is fueling discontent among people in Turkey.” While it is true that some of the protesters have violently responded to Turkish police brutality, the Turkish protesters who have engaged in violence are in fact the minority. Most of the protesters are peaceful and inside sources claim that most of the demonstrators have reacted adversely to demonstrators who have chosen the path of violence. Inside Turkish sources who are on the ground in Istanbul claim that there is a wide coalition of people protesting against Erdogan, not just communists. This coalition includes members of the CHP, Turkey’s main secular opposition; Kurdish activists; and even local soccer fans. In fact, some religious people with hijabs are now reportedly joining the demonstrations against Erdogan. Thus, to loop all of these people together as communists, when only a fraction of the protesters are communist, doesn’t accurately reflect the reality.
Posted on: Wed, 12 Jun 2013 21:12:15 +0000
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