Erdogan increases pressure on the opposition with new arrests

Tension continues to rise in Turkey following the arrest of the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, last week. This sparked the biggest protests in the country for more than a decade, with demonstrations in different areas that have been firmly repressed by the authorities. 

Imamoglu, the main political opponent of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was arrested along with more than a hundred other people, including politicians, journalists and businessmen, on charges of corruption. Those detained also include a key adviser and two district mayors of Istanbul, one of whom has been replaced by a government-appointed official. 

Now in Silivri prison, west of Istanbul, Imamoglu has denied the accusations, claiming that it is political persecution. In addition, Istanbul University announced that it would revoke his university degree due to alleged irregularities, which could jeopardise his eligibility for the presidency, as the Turkish Constitution requires higher education to hold the office. Imamoglu's lawyers have already said they will appeal the decision.

The situation becomes more complex with the intentions of the prosecution to also accuse him of ‘aiding an armed terrorist organisation’, although the Turkish court has stated that, for the moment, it does not consider it necessary to make this accusation. 

The Republican People's Party (CHP), the main opposition party, has strongly supported Imamoglu. Despite his arrest, the party ratified him as its presidential candidate for the 2028 elections in a symbolic vote last Sunday, in which around 15 million people participated, according to its leader, Ozgur Ozel. 

Ozel also spoke out against the government's censorship of social networks. ‘Today they are trying to suppress social networks. Accept it, Mr Tayyip (President Erdogan): you cannot suppress the voice of the people,’ he wrote on his X account, where he also thanked the platform ‘for its courageous, democratic and liberal attitude’. 

The protests have spread throughout the country. Since Imamoglu's arrest on Wednesday, thousands of people have taken to the streets in at least 55 of Turkey's 81 provinces, according to a count by the French news agency AFP. 

The demonstrations, which lasted for five consecutive nights, have been met with tear gas and rubber bullets, and have resulted in numerous arrests. According to official figures from the Minister of the Interior, Ali Yerlikaya, more than 1,133 people have been arrested since the protests began. 

Yerlikaya has defended the government's actions, claiming that the demonstrations ‘abused the right to protest’ and that the protesters were trying to ‘disrupt public order, incite street events and attack our police’. In a lengthy statement, he warned that ‘the terrorisation of our streets and the threat to the peace and security of our nation will not be tolerated’.

Among those detained are also nine journalists who were covering the protests, according to the Journalists' Union of Turkey. One of them is a photographer from the French news agency AFP. 

While the country is experiencing moments of high tension, critical voices denounce that the Erdogan government is intensifying repression to weaken the opposition in the run-up to the next elections. The arrest of Imamoglu and the climate of protests have placed Turkey in the international spotlight, while concern grows for the country's democratic future.