By Jonathan Spicer and Tuvan Gumrukcu
ISTANBUL/ANKARA (Reuters) -Turkey said on Thursday it rejected “prejudiced” foreign statements over the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and protests it triggered, following the detention of nearly 1,900 people since the nationwide demonstrations began eight days ago.
After the arrest and subsequent release of seven local journalists covering the rallies, the BBC separately said that its correspondent, Mark Lowen, had been deported by authorities after being taken from his hotel in Istanbul, where he was covering the protests.
Lowen was told he was “being a threat to public order”, it added, raising concerns by rights groups over press freedoms.
Imamoglu, President Tayyip Erdogan’s biggest political rival who leads him in some polls, was jailed pending trial for graft on Sunday.
His arrest prompted the largest anti-government protests in a decade and led to mass arrests across the country.
Imamoglu’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), other opposition parties, rights groups and Western powers have all said the case against the mayor – dismissed from his job due to the case – was a politicised effort to eliminate a potential electoral threat to Erdogan.
The government denies any influence over the judiciary and says the courts are independent.
Speaking to international media representatives in Istanbul, Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said Ankara had asked its European partners to act with “common sense”, adding the gravity of the allegations against Imamoglu required his arrest.
“We don’t want the arrest of any politician, but if there is evidence of a violation then it can happen,” Tunc said through a translator.
“If we look at the gravity of the allegations, and as there is risk that evidence can be concealed, the judiciary has made a reasonable decision,” he added.
French President Emmanuel Macron later accused the Turkish government of carrying out “systematic attacks” on freedoms.
“(Europe) needs a Turkey that assumes its responsibilities for European security, (and) continues on its democratic path by respecting the commitments it has made,” he said.
The CHP has called on Turks to continue protesting, saying it would organise rallies and gatherings at different locations in Istanbul and elsewhere. Erdogan has dismissed the protests as a “show” and warned of legal consequences for protesters.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said 1,879 people had been detained since the protests erupted last Wednesday, adding that courts jailed 260 of them pending trial.
He added that 489 were released and 662 others were still being processed, while 150 police officers were injured.
Rights groups called on Turkey to probe what they termed excessive force by police in dispersing crowds, and urged the government to allow the protests, which have been largely peaceful.
Western leaders have said the case marked democratic backsliding.
Asked about the temporary arrest of journalists in Istanbul, including a photojournalist from Agence France Presse, Tunc said there was a misperception about Turkey’s treatment of journalists and that it did not jail reporters.
Reporters Without Borders ranked Turkey 158th of 180 countries in its 2024 press freedom index.
It said some 90% of media was under government influence, prompting Turks to turn more to opposition or independent news outlets.
Tunc said the index did not reflect the truth.
NO IMPUNITY
Imamoglu’s March 19 detention came a day after a university annulled his diploma, required for eligibility in a presidential candidacy.
It was also days ahead of his anointing as the CHP’s presidential candidate in the next election, following a months-long legal crackdown on the opposition, particularly Imamoglu.
Asked about the timing of Imamoglu’s arrest, Tunc said the judiciary only looked at criminal reports.
The minister added that being an elected official did not mean impunity.
He also said Erdogan was not being informed about the case against Imamoglu due to the confidentiality of the case, though the president has made several comments accusing the CHP and its municipalities of corruption.
Elections are set for 2028 and if Erdogan, who has dominated Turkish politics for more than two decades but reached his term limit, wishes to run again, parliament will either need to call for early elections or he will need to change the constitution.
On Wednesday, Istanbul’s opposition-run municipality elected an interim mayor, CHP’s Nuri Aslan, to run Turkey’s biggest city for the remainder of Imamoglu’s term, in a move preventing the government from appointing a trustee to run the municipality as it has done for years in other provinces.
Separately, Turkey’s RTUK radio and television watchdog said on Thursday it penalised four opposition TV channels over their coverage of Imamoglu’s case for inciting “hatred and hostility”.
The opposition SZC TV was ordered to halt broadcasting for 10 days, with RTUK warning that a third violation could result in a licence revocation.
Halk TV, Tele1, and Now TV were handed fines and orders to halt some programmes.
“We are being punished for reporting, for trying to make the voices of the people on the streets heard, for broadcasting the recent largest public gatherings that are taking place in Turkey,” SZC TV Editor-in-chief Ozgur Cakmakci told Reuters.
“I don’t think it makes any sense.
We are being punished for just doing our job.”
In the evening, the CHP staged a protest in front of the RTUK building in Ankara, calling on the watchdog to withdraw the penalties.
Since Imamoglu’s detention, Turkish financial assets have plunged, prompting the central bank to use reserves to support the lira.
The government has said the impact of the fluctuations would be limited and temporary. The bank has said the economy’s core dynamics were unharmed but it would take further measures if needed to ensure financial markets’ smooth functioning.
(Additional reporting by Ece Toksabay, Huseyin Hayatsever and Nevzat Devranoglu in Ankara, Emilie Madi in Istanbul; Editing by William Maclean and Andrew Heavens)
