Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested over the weekend on corruption charges. However, as the leader of the opposition, Imamoglu’s arrest has sparked anti-government protests in Turkey. Imamoglu has presented a staunch opposition to Turkish president Recep Erdoğan and, as Al Jazeera reported:
The court’s decision to send Imamoglu to pre-trial detention comes after the opposition, European leaders and tens of thousands of protesters criticised the actions against him as politicised.
Censorship in Turkey
Now, thousands of protesters have been detained and government-owned media appears to be running a blackout on any coverage of the protests. A number of journalists have been arrested and a BBC reporter has even been deported after his reporting of demonstrations.
Hundreds of thousands of protesters have gathered across Turkey in what was initially to express opposition to Imamoglu’s arrest, but have quickly bloomed into wider anti-government gatherings. However, Turkish state media has been accused of censoring any coverage of the protests. The Guardian reported that government owned channels broadcast interviews with ministers unrelated to the protests and that:
Substantive coverage of the protests has instead been the preserve of the small slice of newspapers and cable channels that exist outside the well funded and slick pro-government broadcasting networks.
Erol Önderoğlu of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said:
This is the negative outcome of what Erdoğan has built for two decades, which is a highly polarised, toxic media environment.
Erdoğan now controls about 85% of national and corporate media in Turkey, so we’re not talking about a fair media environment where pluralism truly flourishes.
Deportation
In a move likely to awaken the attention and ire of Western media, the Turkish government have also deported BBC reporter Mark Lowen. In a statement, the BBC said:
This morning (27 March) the Turkish authorities deported BBC News correspondent Mark Lowen from Istanbul, having taken him from his hotel the previous day and detained him for 17 hours.
On Thursday morning, he was presented with a written notice that he was being deported for ‘being a threat to public order’.
Lowen himself said:
To be detained and deported from the country where I previously lived for five years and for which I have such affection has been extremely distressing. Press freedom and impartial reporting are fundamental to any democracy.
And, to further compound the issues of censorship in coverage of the protests, several journalists have been arrested as demonstrations continue. RSF released a statement with the details of those journalists arrested:
AFP photojournalist Yasin Akgül, freelance photojournalist Bülent Kılıç, Now Haber reporter Ali Onur Tosun, and freelance journalist Zeynep Kuray were simply doing their job — covering massive public demonstrations.
An RSF representative in Turkey said:
This is the first time that clearly identified journalists who were in the middle of working have been sent to prison under this law against public gatherings and protests. These scandalous rulings reflect a deeply serious situation in Turkey.
Equating professional journalists with protesters not only shows shameless bad faith but also highlights the grave interference of political power in the judiciary that is attempting to silence the media.
Turkey crackdown
In addition to journalists being arrested, many protesters have been detained by authorities. Footage shared on social media showed rows of riot police threateningly lined up beside protesters:
Striking protest banners from Turkey: ‘Don’t worry, my child—your future parents are here” pic.twitter.com/UMMyZ4dmYj
— Gönül Tol (@gonultol) March 22, 2025
Footage from Getty showed riot police trying to use tear gas on demonstrators:
A demonstrator wearing a gas mask dances through a haze of tear gas as protests continue across Turkey against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu in Istanbul, Turkey. #GettyNewsVideo #TurkeyProtests 🎥 Olmo Blanco 👉 https://t.co/ksSZ7PAPdu pic.twitter.com/eBmtRk5H4Q
— Getty Images News (@GettyImagesNews) March 24, 2025
Gigantic crowds continued to gather despite the attempted government repression:
Erdogan: "You can't go out and protest in Turkey anymore against me! I forbid it! I forbid it you hear me! You'll be all arrested!"
Turks: pic.twitter.com/Gp86lgcMfg
— Dispropaganda (@Dispropoganda) March 22, 2025
Growing anger
At the time of publication, almost 1,900 people have been arrested during the protests. This number will likely increase, with further protests planned for the weekend and no sign of tensions easing. Erdoğan has remained defiant and blamed the opposition for inciting protests.
However, what started as protests against the apparent politically-motivated arrest of a mayor, has quickly captured an exhaustion and frustration with the government that will be much harder to pacify. The Turkish government’s response of censoring, arresting, and deporting even coverage of opposition is testament to their fear of public collectivity and resistance.
Featured image via screengrab
