Turkish authorities tighten the pressure on the opposition community in Istanbul

Turkish authorities tighten the pressure on the opposition community in Istanbul

The Turkish authorities have their repression guided city administration of Istanbul further tightened due to alleged corruption allegations and thereby arrested 30 people.

arrests and investigations

The arrested include a former member of the most important opposition party, the Republican People's Party (CHP), as well as the mayors of three CHP-led districts in Istanbul.

The state news magazine Anadolu Agency reported that the arrests were part of four different corruption investigations that are directed against the metropolitan management of Istanbul.

political context of the arrests

The arrests on Saturday are the fifth wave of a legal repression against the Istanbul administration, which has been going on since March 19, as mayor Ekrem imamoglu was arrested for accusations of corruption.

The arrest of Imamoglu, which is the most suitable challenger of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's 22-year rule, triggered nationwide demonstrations in which his release and an end to the democratic regression in Turkey were required.

allegations of political motivation

The opposition and its supporters claim that the arrest of Imamoglu and the subsequent arrests of dozens of other members of the CHP are politically motivated. "This time the coup did not come with boots and tanks, but with the robe of the prosecutor," said CHP chairman Özgur Ozel on Saturday before a lot of supporters in the northwestern city of Duzce.

The government, on the other hand, insists that the judiciary in Turkey is independent and free of political influence.

repeated repression against the CHP

The second wave of repression against the municipalities led by the CHP was carried out at the end of April, while the third and fourth wave took place at the end of May, which led to dozens of arrests.