Minor editing of translation for readability by Liberation News.
The protests in Istanbul started when heavy construction vehicles entered Taksim Gezi Park on May 28, to destroy the park and prepare the area for shopping mall construction. Activists in Istanbul protested the destruction of the park, the only public green area near Taksim. Activists stayed and started peaceful demonstrations. However, police attacked the activists using pepper gas. The construction vehicles were stopped and people waited in the park to prevent the vehicles from entering. The demonstrations continued peacefully the next day.
On May 30, the police attacked the people waiting in the park at dawn, around 5 a.m. Protesters’ tents were set on fire by police. People were driven out of the park with intense use of pepper gas. The people of Istanbul reacted to this cruel attack, and thousands of people met in Taksim Gezi park that evening. People not only protested the shopping mall project but also the police violence against peaceful demonstrations. Police violence has especially increased during the term of the [ruling] Justice and Development Party (AKP), and the protests turned to target the government.
When the police again attacked the people waiting in the park using pepper gas and pressurized water on the morning of May 31, many people, mainly young, got together in Taksim Square. The police turned Taksim Square into a battlefield. Police even fired pepper gas capsules into the Taksim metro station.
Many people, including journalists, were wounded. Ambulances were obstructed by the police. Police attacked a trade union presence on 10 a.m. in Taksim Square. People were forced from the Park and Taksim Square by violence. However, despite the police attacks, people continued to gather near Taksim, protesting the police violence. The protesters demanded the resignation of the prime minister and the government. The police used thousands of pepper gas capsules, directly targeting people’s heads. Several people were injured, suffering head trauma. The protests continued late into the night.
Protests intensify
Over the weekend, the protests intensified amid increased police violence. Three big cities—Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir—witnessed big protests, where people re-grouped after every police attack. Other cities, including Bursa, Kocaeli, Edirne, Samsun, Hatay, Adana and Antalya, followed the big cities. In no case did the protesters use violence other than to defend themselves. The protests in big cities were terrorized by police forces, which used heavy pepper gas leading to asthma crises, breathing problems and wounds when directly targeted at people.
On June 1, hundreds of thousands of people converged on Taksim Square from all over the city. The police attacked at first using pepper gas, but then retreated. The masses demanded the resignation of the government and punishment for police violence. The masses returned to Taksim Gezi park and waited. However, some people who left the square and walked to Beşiktaş, which is a nearby district, were trapped by police forces and attacked by pepper gas. People in Beşiktaş were severely injured, with many vomiting and suffering chemical wounds on the skin.
In the evening, protests continued in every district of Istanbul, until late at night.
On June 2, a peaceful protest and concert was held in Taksim Square, where people again demanded the resignation of the government. The cruelty in Ankara and other cities was condemned. Some people stayed in Taksim Gezi park and others left for their homes. Again, after this demonstration, people were attacked in Beşiktaş by the police. In the evening, once again demonstrations were organized in every district of Istanbul, with people pouring into arterial roads. In Ümraniye, a taxi sped into the masses killing one 20-year-old.
In Beşiktaş, the police attacks continued all night. There are Youtube videos showing police firing pepper gas into people’s houses.
One the cities suffering police cruelty was Ankara. There the masses of people got together in several districts on June 1 and June 2 protesting the police violence and demanding the resignation of the government. The central square of the city, Kızılay Square, was filled with people, who were brutally attacked by police using concentrated pepper gas. Several people were injured by the gas capsules directly aimed at them by police. On June 1, a man lost his eye.
Wounded people were cared for by volunteer doctors in the buildings of trade unions, non-government organizations and political parties. However, police attacked these buildings as well.
In Izmir, police attacked demonstrations, and several people are still in police custody. There is an attached video, showing police hitting young people sitting at the seaside. The protests and police attacks continued until late at night. Police followed individuals leaving the protests to go home and beat them in isolated locations. It is claimed that members of the AKP also followed protesters to their homes and attacked them.
Police attack on TKP members and buildings
During these events, police attacked members and buildings of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP) several times. On June 2, police attacked the central building of the TKP in Ankara and the Nazım Hikmet Cultural Center garden. The Cultural Center was used as an infirmary for people injured by police attacks. The police attacked wounded people and volunteer doctors using tear gas, and some people were taken into custody.
The party building was also attacked and damaged, but TKP members succeeded in repelling the attacks. In Ankara, more than a thousand people are still in custody, including TKP members. The people in custody have been beaten and are not allowed to talk with their lawyers.
Again on June 2, in Iskenderun, Hatay, a car carrying five TKP members was fired on by police. The car flew into a water channel while trying to escape. The TKP members are injured; one of them is seriously injured and in intensive care. Adana TKP members were also attacked by armed police.
On June 3, the protests spread to university and high school students. Several students boycotted lectures and final exams, in İstanbul, Ankara, İzmir, Kocaeli, Bursa and other cities. Taksim Square is again full of protesters, mainly students. The protests and police attacks in Ankara continue.
