Turkey counts cost of protests

02/06/2013| IslamWeb

Turkey is assessing the damage of violent anti-government protests over the last two days, the worst to have swept the nation in recent times.

Taksim Square in Istanbul, the focus of the demonstrations, was calm on Sunday morning, but protesters say their fight against the policies of the government of Tayyip Recep Erdogan is far from over.

Further protests are expected on Sunday afternoon.

Al Jazeera's correspondent Rawya Rageh said there were burned police cars and other debris around the square, and neighborhood residents were aiding with the clean-up.

She said riot police had pulled back from the square on Saturday after fierce battles with protesters.

The protests in Istanbul were mirrored in dozens of other cities, with many carrying on late into Saturday night and Sunday morning. In Ankara, the capital, smashed shop windows were evidence of the previous evening's violence.

Muammer Guler, the interior minister, said police had detained 939 protesters in over 90 demonstrations across the country. Some have since been released.

He said 53 civilians and 26 police were injured. One of the injured civilians was in intensive care unit at an Istanbul hospital.
The protests then escalated into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly "conservative and authoritarian agenda".

They cite the restrictions on alcohol and warnings against public displays of affection.

Erdogan admitted on Saturday there may have been some cases of "extreme" police action.

It is true that there have been some mistakes, extremism in police response."

However, he remained defiant, pledging to push forward with the plans to redevelop Taksim Square.

Erdogan said the redevelopment of Gezi Park was being used as an excuse for the unrest and warned the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), which had been given permission to hold a rally in Istanbul, against stirring tensions.

Both the UK and US called on Turkey's government to exercise restraint.

PHOTO CAPTION

Riot police use tear gas to disperse the crowd during a violent anti-government protest in Istanbul June 1, 2013.

Al-Jazeera