Turkish police seal off İstanbul’s Gezi Park on eve of protest anniversary - TRNEWS

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31 Mayıs 2018 Perşembe

Turkish police seal off İstanbul’s Gezi Park on eve of protest anniversary

Following a call made by the Taksim Solidarity, one of the leading groups formed to represent Gezi Park protesters, for the İstanbul’s Gezi Park on May 29 for the protest on Thursday evening on the 5th anniversary of the Gezi Protests in 2013, the Turkish police have closed the park with barricades. Some roads leading to Taksim Square have also been closed to traffic.

The police have closed off access to İstanbul’s Gezi Park on the eve of the anniversary of anti-government protests that shook Turkey in 2013, Doğan News Agency has reported. Police sealed Gezi Park’s entrances with barriers early on Thursday morning, according to the report.

Taksim Solidarity, had earlier announced that an event to mark the protests’ fifth anniversary would be held at 7 p.m. on May 31 at the iconic park. “As the Taksim Solidarity, we’ll go to the park with flowers in our hands and peace and friendship in our hearts in order to remember our children and look after their demands,” the group’s secretary general Mücella Yapıcı said in a written statement.

Taksim Solidarity gave a statement for the press on May 29 and made a call to the Gezi Park at 7 p.m. on Thursday with the slogan “Darkness passes, Gezi remains.”

It was stated in the statement that “Wherever you are, chant a slogan, prepare a banner and take a picture of it, fasten a cloth around a tree, take to the parks, organize a forum, converse with one another, sing our songs. Gezi is everywhere you are.”

The Gezi protests erupted on May 27, 2013, when a small group of young protesters refused to leave Gezi Park in Taksim in order to prevent the cutting down of trees for a large development project planned by the government.

Following the government’s harsh response, protests spread to the whole country on May 31, 2013. During the protests, 11 people were killed by the police, including eight youngsters, as more than 8,000 others were injured, dozens of them critically.

“Some roads at Taksim Square and its vicinity will be closed to vehicle traffic as of 03:30 p.m. until the end of related security measures,” said in a written statement released by İstanbul Security Directorate.

The post Turkish police seal off İstanbul’s Gezi Park on eve of protest anniversary appeared first on Stockholm Center for Freedom.



from Stockholm Center for Freedom https://stockholmcf.org/turkish-police-seal-off-istanbuls-gezi-park-on-eve-of-protest-anniversary/

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