{"id":1289,"date":"2023-03-07T14:37:01","date_gmt":"2023-03-07T13:37:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/?page_id=1289"},"modified":"2023-04-04T21:55:09","modified_gmt":"2023-04-04T19:55:09","slug":"march-2023","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/?page_id=1289","title":{"rendered":"March 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Turkey Weekly 27 – 31 March<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 31.03.2023<\/strong>
Yesterday the Turkish parliament has approved Finland’s application to join NATO after months of delays.\u00a0
Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections are considered among the most vulnerable in the world, Freedom House’s Election Vulnerability Index shows, scoring behind countries like Pakistan, Zimbabwe, and Bangladesh.
23 people, including DBP and HDP district co-chairs, were detained in house raids in Suru\u00e7 of Urfa district on March 27. Today the judgeship decided to arrest 23 people on the allegation of “being a member of a terrorist organization”.\u00a0
Stating that public officials are trying to cover up the crime with the release of 2 of the police officers who tortured Y.D in L\u00eece, Amed Bar Association President Nahit Eren said: “5 police officers are also responsible for torture.”
Prosecutors in Van have opened an investigation against journalist Ru\u015fen Takva due to his comments about the election alliance led by the country’s ruling party. He described the ruling alliance as ‘racist, reactionary’.\u00a0
An unidentified person or persons launched an armed attack on the \u0130Y\u0130 Party \u0130stanbul’s provincial office building. One of the bullets struck a window.\u00a0
A court has released \u0130smail Cevher Kas\u0131mo\u011flu, who threatened the opposition figures in a street interview in Batman province by saying \u201cwe will behead them.\u201d In the street interview, he stated that he is affiliated with Hizbullah.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 30.03.2023<\/strong>
7 people of the villagers who protested the closing of 11,000 decares of land in Urfa’s Viran\u015fer district were detained and beaten by the police.\u00a0
It was stated that 72 percent disabled \u015eehmus Demir, who was brought to the Bismil Courthouse for a statement yesterday, was beaten by the police in front of the prosecutor’s room because he said he wanted to smoke.
Presidential candidate K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu visited Muharrem \u0130nce, his party’s candidate in the previous election, amid concerns that \u0130nce may take away crucial votes from him. \u0130nce’s decision didn’t change.\u00a0
President Erdo\u011fan has announced that the minimum wage will rise in July for a second time this year.
A press conference was held at the Human Rights Association \u0130stanbul branch for the right of Ekim Polat, a seriously ill prisoner in Denizli, to get access to treatment.\u00a0
An investigation has been launched against four special operations police officers for battering a 16-year-old child and a 18-year-old youth who were wearing traditional Kurdish outfits in\u00a0Mardin.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 29.03.2023<\/strong>
Despite the KCK’s decision of military inaction after the earthquake, Turkey continues its attacks on HPG areas in the Federated Kurdistan Region.
In Bolu Prison, the released of 12 prisoners were delayed 30 times over a year, on the grounds of “not using water economically”, “not leaving the organization”, “not making a petition of regret”, “not participating in spiritual activities”.
MHP chair Devlet Bah\u00e7eli rejected claims that his party will compete in the May 14 elections under the AKP lists.\u00a0
The \u0130Y\u0130 Party has said that if the Supreme Election Council (YSK) rejects their appeal against Erdo\u011fan\u2019s presidential candidacy for the third time, they will file an application with the Constitutional Court.
Former Environment and Forestry Minister Veysel Ero\u011flu, who currently serves as the head of the parliament\u2019s Earthquake Research Commission, has admitted that his ministry had warned against the construction of Hatay Airport at its current location.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 28.03.2023<\/strong>
The “Temporary Candidate List” for the elections to be held on May 14 has been published in the Official Gazette. The list included CHP Chairperson Kemal K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu, Homeland party chairperson Muharrem \u0130nce , AKP President Tayyip Erdo\u011fan and Sinan O\u011fan from Ata alliance.\u00a0
Two police officers for whom arrest warrants were issued in the torture investigation against 14-year-old Y.D. in Lice were released on condition of judicial control.
The second hearing of the case on the death of Y\u0131lmaz Ekinci who died on in Ayd\u0131n prison was held in \u0130stanbul. The court rejected the requests for the witnesses to be invited to give testimony, for exploration of the scene of the event, and for sending the file to the Medical Forensic Institute. Trial adjourned until June.\u00a0
The first hearing of the trial in which Yeni\u00e7a\u011f daily’s chief editor Erdem Av\u015far faces “insult” and “libel” charges upon complaint by Turkuvaz Media Group CEO Serhat Albayrak was held in \u0130stanbul. Accepting the intervention request of Albayrak’s lawyer, the judge decided to send the case file to the prosecutor so that he can prepare his final opinion as to the accusations. The trial is adjourned until 14 September 2023.
The Turkish Red Crescent\u2019s head Kerem K\u0131n\u0131k has argued that his resignation would create a \u201cchaotic situation\u201d within the organization. K\u0131n\u0131k made the comments after opposition deputies of the parliament\u2019s earthquake commission questioned him.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 27.03.2023<\/strong>
Asr\u0131n Law Office stated that they have not received any news from their client, PKK leader Abdullah \u00d6calan for the last two years and that they are worried about his life.
18 people, including HDP and DBP executives, were detained in Urfa’s Suru\u00e7 district.
MHP leader Devlet Bah\u00e7eli has claimed that H\u00dcDA-PAR has no links to Hizbullah, known for extrajudicial killings in the late 1980s and 1990s. Bah\u00e7eli’s remarks were refuted by former Interior Minister Sadettin Tantan.
6 villages of Cizre have been under a military blockade for 10 days on the grounds of “notification”.\u00a0
Banned for over a month now, Ek\u015fi S\u00f6zl\u00fck, a popular social networking site in Turkey, has applied to the Constitutional Court.
About 60,000 refugees from Syria have returned to their countries since the earthquakes, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar has announced.\u00a0
A foundation laid during the groundbreaking ceremony for a state hospital in the quake-hit province of Hatay, which was attended by President Erdo\u011fan, was removed a day later.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Weekly 20 – 26 March 2023<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 26.03.2023<\/strong>
Two earthquake survivors were severely hurt in a tent fire in Hatay\u2019s \u0130skenderun district. 
It was stated that in the villages and hamlets of Y\u00fcksekova, where the blockade continues, soldiers broke down the doors of the houses and cut down the fruit trees of the villagers.
Diyarbakir Governorate stated that 5 police officers were suspended from duty due to the torture of 14-year-old Y.D. in Lice district.
Homeland Party Chair Muharrem \u0130nce has gathered 100,000 signatures, a requirement to be a presidential candidate for parties that have no group in the parliament. He became the third presidential candidate after Erdo\u011fan and K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu.
The AKP and its latest alliance partner New Welfare Party (YRP) have signed a protocol including subtle clauses to usurp the rights of women and LGBTI+ community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 25.03.2023<\/strong>
Labor and Freedom Alliance submitted the election alliance protocol to the Supreme Election Board.
President Erdo\u011fan has thrown toys to earthquake victims from the bus in Hatay. 
Mehmet Beyaz\u0131t, who was released by a Turkish court after committing a racist attack on the HDP Istanbul provincial building in February, attacked the building on March 25 again. The assailant spray-painted the entrance and doors of the party building.
The Islamist New Welfare Party joined the ruling coalition People\u2019s Alliance. Also, the radical Islamist Free Cause Party announced that they will run in the general elections under the AKP deputy list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 24.03.2023<\/strong>
Former chair of High Education Council \u00d6zcan has said that he was unable to find President Erdo\u011fan\u2019s university diploma during his time in office even though he contacted the administration of Marmara Uni from where the president is said to have graduated.
Foreign Affairs Commission of the Parliament of Turkey approved the protocol for Finland’s NATO membership yesterday while Finland’s president Sauli Niinisto signed the NATO legislation of his country in a ceremony the same day. 
JINHA reporter Medine Mamedo\u011flu, who went to the region for news follow-up after the earthquake in Mara\u015f on February 6, was summoned to testify on the grounds of her news posts on social media.
The Culture Ministry spent 2,6 million liras for a book of which President Erdo\u011fan’s wife Emine Erdo\u011fan wrote the foreword. The spending was undertaken as part of the “Project for the Publication of Works of National Culture” and the book\u2019s number of editions surpassed all other works under the project.
The account of the weekly Kurdish newspaper Xweb\u00fbn with 29 thousand 488 followers that was blocked on February 22 was restored by Twitter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 23.03.2023<\/strong>
The HDP will compete in the May elections under the Green Left Party, its co-leader Mithat Sancar has confirmed.
14-year-old Y.D. was unlawfully held by the police, tortured, and then left in a deserted area on March 21 in Diyarbak\u0131r’s Lice district. After the incident was reported in the media, the father and their lawyer were called to the prosecutor’s office to give their statements. 
HDP Bah\u00e7elievler Plateau Election Liaison Office was attacked by unidentified people last night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Court of Human Rights has convicted Turkey for violating the rights of three of the academics who were dismissed and put on trial for signing a 2016 declaration criticizing the government over the conflict in the country’s Kurdish-majority regions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 22.03.2023<\/strong>
The Constitutional Court rejected HDP’s application for the closure case to be postponed until after the election. 
Labor and Freedom Alliance stated that they will not nominate candidates in the Presidential elections, they will fulfill their historical responsibilities against the one-man regime and hold them accountable.
The media watchdog RT\u00dcK has fined Halk TV for promoting jailed former HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirta\u015f\u2019s story book Dad on the grounds of \u201cpraising criminals.\u201d 
The Constitutional Court has founds rights violation in the murder case of U\u011fur Kurt who was killed by a police officer in 2014 as he was attending a funeral in Istanbul\u2019s Okmeydan\u0131 Cemevi. The top court ruled for a retrial of the police officer in question.
A court has arrested the building inspector of R\u00f6nesans Rezidans, a luxury residence in Hatay that collapsed in the February earthquakes. Nearly 1,000 people died in the building. 
Muharrem \u0130nce, former CHP Presidential candidate, insists on running for president as K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu wants to meet him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 21.03.2023<\/strong>
Hundreds of thousands celebrated Newroz in Diyarbak\u0131r. A black stage was set up because the Newroz was dedicated to those who lost their lives in the February 6 earthquakes. 
Many people were detained in house raids in Antalya. 
The disaster management agency AFAD has announced that a fire broke out at one of their buildings where some documents are located in their headquarters and that it was brought under control shortly afterwards.
The Justice Ministry has suspended a civil servant from duty for writing on his Whatsapp status that he does not grant his \u201cforgiveness\u201d to the government over its inadequate earthquake response. 
Supermarket chain Migros detected large amounts of arsenic in Turkish Red Crescent\u2019s (\u201cK\u0131z\u0131lay\u201d) mineral water brand \u201cK\u0131z\u0131lay Maden Suyu\u201d in 2019. 
The AKP and MHP jointly applied to the Supreme Election Council for Erdo\u011fan’s presidential candidacy in the elections.
A judge has blocked access to the EngelliWeb platform, which monitors internet censorship in Turkey. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 20.03.2023<\/strong>
Presidential candidate of the Nation Alliance, Kemal K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu, who visited HDP, stated that they will end the fight in this country and pointed to the Parliament for the solution of the Kurdish Question. 
HDP provincial co-chair in Bursa, Mehmet Dilek, was detained in a police raid on his home early today. 
The Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency announced that the number of people who lost their lives in the earthquake increased to 50 thousand 96.
The head of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality\u2019s Earthquake Risk Management and Urban Improvement Department, \u00d6zlem Tut, has said that 29,000 buildings have been so far inspected as part of a free scan program and that half of them are under high risk of collapse in case of a major earthquake.
A judge in \u0130stanbul has blocked access to 47 news articles and social media posts about the Free Cause Party (H\u00dcDA PAR), which recently announced support for President Erdo\u011fan, as per a request from the party’s chair. Critics link H\u00dcDA PAR to the Hizbullah, which perpetrated hundreds of targeted killings in the 1990s. 
224 people, including 46 children, who were detained by the police after Newroz in \u0130stanbul yesterday, were released after their statements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Turkey Weekly 13 – 19 March 2023<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 19.03.2023<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today hundreds of thousands of people celebrated Newroz across Turkey. 
Following the end of Newroz in Istanbul’s Yenikap\u0131 Square, the police attacked the crowd and detained approximately 200 people, including disabled children and lawyers.
Deutsche Welle\u2019s (DW) Turkey office will be shut down at the end of March after the Industry and Technology Ministry refused to extend its operation license. 
In a new move targeting the opposition Halk TV, the head of Turkey\u2019s media watchdog has argued that the TV channel was undertaking “provocative broadcasts” and announced a fresh investigation against it. 
On the 40th day of the earthquakes in the southern Hatay province, women residing in the Samanda\u011f district have marched with incense burners and endemic plant leaves to commemorate those who lost their lives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 18.03.2023<\/strong>
\u0130brahim Y\u0131ld\u0131z, who has been arrested for 5 years for killing Celal \u015eenya\u015far from \u015eenya\u015far family and injuring Adil \u015eenya\u015far, died in the hospital where he was treated. 
A court has fined actress Farah Zeynep Abdullah to pay 1,300 liras in a case concerning her tweet about former sergeant Musa Orhan who sexually assaulted a young Kurdish woman and caused her death. Last year, actress Ezgi Mola had similarly received an administrative fine over the same charges. 
AKP group deputy chair \u00d6zlem Zengin has stated that she is being targeted and threatened for staunchly defending the Law No. 6284 to Protect Family and Prevent Violence Against Women and added that she is “tired of loneliness” for not getting enough support from her community.
President Erdo\u011fan scolded Trade Minister Mehmet Mu\u015f and asked him to change his signature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 17.03.2023<\/strong>
Turkey will ratify Finland’s NATO membership, President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan announced today. 
The file regarding the lifting of the immunity of HDP members H\u00fcda Kaya, Musa Piro\u011flu and T\u0130P member Bar\u0131\u015f Atay has been submitted to the Presidency of the Assembly.
HDP Group Deputy Chairpersons Meral Dan\u0131\u015f Be\u015fta\u015f and Saruhan Olu\u00e7 stated that there was a serious lack of coordination and planlessness in the disaster area after the earthquakes. They requested a Parliamentary Investigation Commission on the Red Crescent. 
Two journalists, including JINNEWS reporter G\u00fclistan Dursun,  who followed the \u015eenya\u015far family’s sit-in were detained.
Loss of life in the floods in Urfa and Ad\u0131yaman rose to 18.
Agriculture and Forestry Minister Vahit Kiri\u015fci said that \u201cthe (arid) land got water\u201d while talking about the floods. 
Labor Ministry did not give permission to an investigation against two chief inspectors over the death of 42 miners in the mine explosion in Amasra district. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 16.03.2023<\/strong>
Police raids were carried out on several houses in Van in the morning hours. 9 women including Green Left Party Van Co-spokesperson G\u00f6n\u00fcl Uzunay and HDP \u0130pekyolu Municipality Council member \u00d6zlem Tuci were detained during the raids. 
9 Socialist Party of the Oppressed, Socialist Youth Associations Federation (SGDF) and Socialist Women’s Council (SKM) members were arrested for their posts and negative statements on social media about those who lost their lives fighting against ISIS in Kobane.
At least 15 people were killed in the flash floods which have swept through the earthquake-hit Ad\u0131yaman and Urfa provinces. 
The AKP parliamentary group has taken a group decision to nominate Erdo\u011fan as their presidential candidate in the May 14 elections. 
Syria’s President Bashar Assad has said they he will only meet President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan if Turkey withdraws its troops from Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 15.03.2023<\/strong>
The HDP has made a second application to the Constitutional Court, demanding the postponement of the closure case against it until after the elections.
Heavy rain fell on Urfa, Ad\u0131yaman, Malatya, and Mara\u015f resulting in floods. Eleven people lost their lives in Urfa. One container was dragged and two people died in Ad\u0131yaman. Tents were flooded in Malatya and Mara\u015f. 
20 members of ESP, SGDF and Leverage, who wanted to make a statement in front of the courthouse for their detained members, were beaten and detained. 
The police has raided the house of bianet Kurd\u00ee’s editor Aren Y\u0131ld\u0131r\u0131m early in the morning and taken the journalist into custody. According to his lawyer a restriction order has been imposed on the investigation file and Y\u0131ld\u0131r\u0131m will not be allowed to see his lawyers for 24 hours. 
The 2nd hearing of the trial in which journalists Firat Fistik and Ozan Buz face \u201cillegally obtaining or giving data\u201d charges upon complaint by the Bo\u011fazi\u00e7i University\u2019s appointed rector Mehmet Naci \u0130nci, was held in Istanbul. Trial adjourned until March 17. 
During his visit in Hatay CHP chair Kemal K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu has once again vowed to deport refugees to their homeland should the opposition bloc come to power. 
The Turkish Football Federation announced that the penalty for playing 9 matches without spectators against Bursaspor in the racist attack during the Amedspor match was reduced to 7 matches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 14.03.2023<\/strong>
Interior Minister S\u00fcleymen Soylu has asked citizens to donate breakfast food, tea, sugar, sweatpants, and slippers to the quake survivors and admitted that they cannot provide breakfast in some regions on the 33rd day of earthquakes.
Ferhat Aydo\u011fan, the \u201cpress advisor\u201d of mafia leader Alaattin \u00c7ak\u0131c\u0131, announced that he visited Gendarmerie General Commander General Arif \u00c7etin in quake-hit Mara\u015f on March 13.
The Spokesperson of the Iraqi Ministry of Water Resources stated that they wanted Turkey to remove the barriers they put on the water coming to Iraq via the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and stated that Iraq needs 400 to 500 cubic meters of water per second.
Ferhat \u00c7elik, grant holder of the Mezopotamya Agency, was detained today in \u0130stanbul. \u00c7elik has been released after his statement was taken.
Editor-in-Chief of the closed \u00d6zg\u00fcr G\u00fcndem Newspaper, Reyhan \u00c7apan, was fined 50 thousand TL for not publishing a correction for the newspaper’s article titled “Child killers”.
The 5th hearing of the trial in which journalists Do\u011fan Erg\u00fcn and Izel Sezer face multiple charges upon complaint by President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan\u2019s former lawyer Mustafa Do\u011fan \u0130nal was held in \u0130stanbul. Giving additional time for the possible appeal against the rejection the trial was adjourned until June.
The number of arrests in relation to social media posts about last month’s earthquakes has risen to 43, the police announced today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 13.03.2023<\/strong>
At least 13 people, including HDP executives and Mothers of Peace, were detained in house raids in \u0130zmir. 
Prisoner Yusuf Erkek, who ended his hunger strike against rights violations in Afyon Prison due to earthquakes, drew attention to the statement of the 2nd director of the prison, “We know how to approach people like people, and terrorists like terrorists”, and said, “We will insist on our demands.”
The governor of the quake hit Hatay\u2019s K\u0131r\u0131khan district has instructed civil servants to attend a speech that President Erdo\u011fan gave here on March 12. 
An administrative court has paved the way for four peace academics to be reinstated to their posts, six years after they were dismissed from Ankara University by government decrees. 
AKP has refuted reports of having accepted the Islamist New Welfare Party\u2019s demand that the Law No. 6284 to Protect Family and Prevent Violence Against Women be annulled. 
Kemal K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu, the opposition’s joint presidential candidate, has said that he will visit co-leaders of the HDP.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Weekly 6-12 March 2023<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 12.03.2023<\/strong>
HDP former Urfa MP Ibrahim Binici was arrested at his home and taken to the \u00c7ankaya District Police Department.
Tenders for the housing construction projects in the quake zone are being held secretly from the public despite experts’ warning against a hasty rebuild. Almost all of the tenders, worth around 30 billion liras, have been awarded to pro-gov’t companies.
Yunus Sezer, Chair of Turkey\u2019s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency, announced on Saturday that the death toll has risen to 47,975. The victims include 6,278 foreigners, he added.
An appeal court has sentenced Cemal Metin Avc\u0131 to aggravated life in prison over brutally killing P\u0131nar G\u00fcltekin in 2020 and then burning her body, lifting the lower court’s ruling to reduce Avc\u0131’s sentence to 23 years due to “unjust provocation.” 
Several houses in Adana, Ankara and \u0130stanbul have been raided by the police. Nine people, including journalist Elif Bayburt, who works as a correspondent for the ETHA news agency, have been detained.
The Justice Watch carried out by the \u015eenya\u015far family has reached 720. The family said: “Those who witness injustice and condone it are doomed to lose.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 11.03.2023<\/strong>
MHP leader Devlet Bah\u00e7eli referred to the Constitutional Court as the “backyard of the separatist terrorist organization” while mentioning its ruling to lift the decision to freeze the HDP’s bank accounts. The current AYM “is not the court of the Turkish nation,” Bah\u00e7eli noted.
Supreme Election Board (YSK) Chairperson Ahmet Yener announced that the election date has been decided as 14 May. 
A drone attack was carried out against a vehicle in the \u00c7em\u00e7emal district of Suleymani. As a result of the attack, one person was killed and two others were injured. 
Journalist F\u0131rat Bulut has been detained for \u201cspreading false information\u201d after reporting from the earthquake-hit region for a month. 
Mehmet \u015eirin Acar, who is imprisoned in Erzincan Type T Prison, stated that they were subjected to strip search upon the instructions of the prison administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 06.03.2023<\/strong>
Mayors of \u0130stanbul and Ankara have visited \u0130Y\u0130 Party\u2019s Ak\u015fener, apparently to persuade her to return to the opposition alliance. She is now back in the alliance. 
The second hearing of the trial in which human rights defender and designer Asl\u0131 Sara\u00e7 faces \u201cmaking propaganda for a terrorist organization\u201d charge was held in Ankara. The court decided to wait for the expert’s report. Trial adjourned until June.
Ceylan \u015eahinli, one of the nine Kurdish journalists who were arrested on October 29, has been indicted for “propagandizing for a terrorist organization.” 
A court has issued an arrest warrant Ha\u015fim Cemal E., who allegedly abused a child after she was pulled out of the rubble in Hatay after last month’s earthquakes. 
Women gathered in Istanbul ahead of International Women\u2019s Day and called on the government to resign over the failure to prevent femicides and violence against women. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Turkey Weekly 01 – 28 March 2023<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 05.03.2023<\/strong>
After \u0130Y\u0130 Party chair Ak\u015fener’s signal to leave the main opposition Nation Alliance, former HDP Co-Chair Selahattin Demirta\u015f said “Don’t worry, leaders only have one vote, just like you. Walk on the path you believe in, let the leaders follow you.”
Five opposition party leaders of the Nation Alliance have met without \u0130Y\u0130 Party chair Meral Ak\u015fener after she signaled to leave the bloc. In a joint statement, the leaders said their aim is gaining a victory that has no loser.
Fans of Bursaspor football team shouted anti-Kurdish slogans and chants ahead of their team\u2019s bout with Diyarbakir-based Amedspor. Players of Amedspor were also physically attacked. 
14 bar associations released a statement regarding the attacks on Amedspor demanding the perpetrators to be put on trial. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 04.03.2023<\/strong>
The military operation that started 3 days ago in Hakkari’s Y\u00fcksekova district continues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey bombed the villages east of Koban\u00ea city in Northern and Eastern Syria with howitzers. 
Neriman D\u00f6nmez and Erkan G\u00fcl, who were detained in the house raids carried out by the police in Tunceli and beaten with a sack over their heads, were arrested.
Despite the earthquake, an investigation was opened in accordance with the \u201cCensorship Law” about the Mothers of Peace in \u015e\u0131rnak, who pointed out the responsibility of the government. 
Mayors of Ankara and \u0130stanbul have released statements supporting CHP leader K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu’s presidential candidacy after \u0130Y\u0130 Party leader Meral Ak\u015fener called the both to run for office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 03.03.2023<\/strong>
Rejecting CHP chair Kemal K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu\u2019s expected nomination for the presidency, \u0130Y\u0130 Party leader Meral Ak\u015fener has called on CHP mayors of Istanbul and Ankara to take on the role. 
The Constitutional Court will hear an appeal by the HDP against its exclusion from state party funding next Thursday. 
Bo\u011fazi\u00e7i University has changed its regulations on dormitories, making it easier for the school management to expel protesting students from dormitories.
The government has been evicting quake-hit citizens living in tents set up by NGOs in parks, forcing them to reside at alternate camps set up by the governor’s offices. Members of People’s Houses protesting the evictions have been detained in Ankara.
A court once again blocks access to popular social network Ek\u015fi S\u00f6zl\u00fck. 
The coastline of the Tigris River passing through the Hevsel Gardens, which is on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List, is turned into agricultural areas by filling the islets and meanders. Authorities are content to watch the river bed being destroyed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 02.03.2023<\/strong>
Responding to the criticism of the Turkish military\u2019s absence from post-quake efforts, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said: \u201cWho is going to protect the borders? Who is going to stay in Syria? Are we going to evacuate Syria, are we going to evacuate Iraq?
Turkey carried out an air strike to the east of Kobane.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first hearing of the trial in which the Co-Chair of the Human Rights Association (\u0130HD) \u00d6zt\u00fcrk T\u00fcrkdo\u011fan faces \u201copenly degrading the state of the Republic of Turkey\u201d charge was held in Ankara. The prosecutor requested the case file to be sent to them so that they can prepare their final opinion as to the accusations. Trial adjourned until March.
The 1st hearing of the retrial of Taraf newspaper\u2019s former administrators Ahmet Altan, Yasemin \u00c7ongar and Y\u0131ld\u0131ray O\u011fur, journalists Mehmet Baransu and Tuncay Op\u00e7in who face multiple charges was held in \u0130stanbul. Trial adjourned until May. 
An access ban imposed on Ek\u015fi S\u00f6zl\u00fck, one of the most popular websites in Turkey, has been lifted after nine days, the CEO of the platform has announced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Today – 01.03.2023<\/strong>
An airstrike was carried out by Turkey against a vehicle in Shengal. It was reported that there were wounded in the attack. 
The Union of Turkish Bar Associations filed a criminal complaint against the Red Crescent officials to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. 
The Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) announced that the number of people who lost their lives in the earthquakes increased to 45,089. 
Participating in the damage assessment studies in Mara\u015f Mihail Atik, President of the Chamber of Civil Engineers Van Branch said: “If the buildings had been built according to the earthquake regulations, we would have experienced 3 or 4 percent of the destruction.”
Tents set up in Ko\u015fuyolu Park are being emptied as a result of pressure. The electricity of those who did not leave the tents was cut off even though they had disabled children and babies. 
8 people, including People’s House MP Chairperson Zeynep \u00c7elik, who protested the decision to remove tents and containers set up in solidarity with earthquake victims in Sevgi Park, were beaten and detained.
President Erdo\u011fan has once again signaled that presidential and parliamentary elections will be held on May 14, which is normally scheduled to be held in June.
The eighth hearing of the SLAPP brought against Evrensel daily columnist and academic Ceren S\u00f6zeri by the CEO of Turkuvaz Media Group Serhat Albayrak was held in \u0130stanbul. The court decided to wait for the responses to the writs issued to Ey\u00fcpsultan and Kad\u0131k\u00f6y police. Trial adjourned until June. 
The third hearing of the trial in which popstar G\u00fcl\u015fen faces \u201copenly inciting the public to hatred and hostility\u201d charge was held in \u0130stanbul. The court decided to give additional time for G\u00fcl\u015fen, her lawyers and the complainants to prepare their arguments against the final opinion. Trial adjourned until May. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Turkey Weekly 27 – 31 March Turkey Today – 31.03.2023Yesterday the Turkish parliament has approved Finland’s application to join NATO after months of delays.\u00a0Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections are considered among the most vulnerable in the world, Freedom House’s Election… Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1289","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1289","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1289"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1289\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/eutcc.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1289"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}