The great divide
The recent events in Turkey following Prime Minister Erdogan’s authoritarian actions have only polarised its society and politics further. By JOHN CHERIAN
THE nationwide protests that have rocked Turkey since the end of May, claiming three lives and leaving more than 5,000 people injured, show no sign of ending. Even after the police forcibly ejected protesters in Taksim Square in Istanbul and Kizilay Square in Ankara on June 15, protests are continuing in the major cities of the country. For a brief period it looked as if the situation was heading towards a bloody denouement, but the siege of Taksim Square ended temporarily. No deaths were reported from there. However, many protesters were hospitalised. Several doctors who attended to them at the protest sites were arrested on charges of sympathising with them. The government also declared the area closed for meetings and protests. It will, however, be difficult to keep the area cordoned off indefinitely. Riot police had to fire tear gas shells and use water cannons against thousands of protesters who tried to regroup and enter the area after they were dispersed. Trade unions announced a nationwide strike following the crackdown. In other words, Turkey seems to be heading for more political turbulence.
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