http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2013/06/201368121910137157.html
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-pm-erdogan-parliament-speaker-to-hold-emergency-meeting.aspx?pageID=238&nID=48456&NewsCatID=338
Turkish Parliamentary SpeakerCemil Çiçek and Prime MinisterRecep Tayyip Erdoğan are to hold an emergency meeting later today amid the country-wide demonstrations over the demolition of Istanbul’s Gezi Park.
Apart from the ongoing nationwide discussion over the Gezi Park protests, the meeting between the country’s most important politicians is also expected to focus on the process to draft a new Constitution.
Çiçek, who is heading a parliamentary panel tasked with rewriting the Constitution, is expected to brief Erdoğan at the progress of the four-party panel drafting the document. Thanks to a push from Çiçek, the parties have now agreed on around 50 articles, but that is still less than half of the proposed charter.
Another main issue is the election of the parliamentary speaker as Çiçek’s mandate will expire in early July. Erdoğan is expected to ask Çiçek to continue for another two years in a bid to avoid harming the ongoing charter process. An election for the post is expected to take place on June 28, but the election procedure is expected to begin next week.
The meeting has been scheduled for 5 p.m. at the Prime Minister’s Working Office in Dolmabahçe, Istanbul.
Erdoğan had also called an emergency meeting of the highest decision-making body of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). The meeting gathering the 50-seat Central Decision and Executive Council (MKYK) started at 2 p.m. Such gatherings usually take place at the AKP headquarters in Ankara, but today’s meeting will atypically be held in Istanbul.
Erdoğan will leave the party gathering early to meet with Çiçek, according to reports.
Tear gas returns to Turkey protests |
Force used again on ninth day of rallies in Ankara, as fears grow that thriving tourism industry is set to suffer.
Last Modified: 08 Jun 2013 21:07
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| Thousands of Turks joined mass anti-government protests which have stretched to over one week, defying Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's call to end the worst civil unrest of his decade-long rule. Reports of renewed riot police force against protesters in Ankara surfaced on Saturday evening, with tear gas and water cannon apparently sprayed at people gathering in the capital's Kizilay Square. In Istanbul meanwhile, crowds were said to be at their highest levels on the ninth straight day of protests, with football fans and feminists taking to the streets. People began arriving in the city's Taksim Square in the morning with food and blankets to settle in for demonstrations, adding to the growing tent city in nearby Gezi Park. "A week ago, I could never imagine myself sleeping out on the streets of Istanbul," said 22-year-old Aleyna, wrapped up under a blanket with a stray kitten, pointing to her dirty clothes. "Now I don't know how I can ever go back." But the lingering rallies, heaviest in Turkey's main tourist hubs such as Istanbul's main Taksim Square, are starting to negatively impact business for many. Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Istanbul, said that "the whole area houses hotels, restaurants and shopping malls, and there are concerns that tourism might decline if the unrest continues. "Hotels in Istanbul are starting to feel the brunt of the crisis." Erdogan, on Saturday, was meeting in Istanbul with top officials of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) to discuss the crisis, and a deputy prime minister was due to make a speech later on Saturday. He renewed a call for an immediate end to the protests a day earlier, saying his government was open to "democratic demands", insisting that the protests were "bordering on vandalis." His government also dashed any hopes from the protesters to hold early elections. 'Democratic demands' The political turmoil erupted after police cracked down heavily on a small campaign to save Gezi Park from demolition, spiralling into nationwide protests against Erdogan and the AKP, seen as increasingly authoritarian. Police have used tear gas and water cannon to disperse demonstrators in clashes that have injured thousands of people and left three dead, tarnishing Turkey's image as a model of Islamic democracy. Faced with international criticism, Erdogan on Friday accused Western allies of double standards after EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule urged a "swift and transparent" probe into police abuses in Turkey, a longtime EU hopeful. Erdogan issued a sharp retort, saying those involved in a similar protest would "face a harsher response" in any European country. The premier, who has dismissed the demonstrators as "looters" manipulated by extremists, added in a more conciliatory tone: "I'm open-hearted to anyone with democratic demands." But demonstrators dug in their heels overnight, with thousands massing peacefully in a festive Taksim Square, while in other Turkish cities they took to the streets, banging pots and pans as they marched in protest. Taksim has been free of a police presence since officers relinquished the square to protesters last Saturday after the government acknowledged it was the police's heavy-handed response that lit the flame of the unrest. In a quiet night nationwide, one only Istanbul suburb saw fresh clashes, with police using tear gas and water cannon on protesters who reportedly threw fireworks and homemade bombs at them. |
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-pm-erdogan-parliament-speaker-to-hold-emergency-meeting.aspx?pageID=238&nID=48456&NewsCatID=338
Turkish PM Erdoğan, parliament speaker to hold emergency meeting
The meeting gathering the 50-seat Central Decision and Executive Council (MKYK) of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) started at 1 p.m. AA photo
Apart from the ongoing nationwide discussion over the Gezi Park protests, the meeting between the country’s most important politicians is also expected to focus on the process to draft a new Constitution.
Çiçek, who is heading a parliamentary panel tasked with rewriting the Constitution, is expected to brief Erdoğan at the progress of the four-party panel drafting the document. Thanks to a push from Çiçek, the parties have now agreed on around 50 articles, but that is still less than half of the proposed charter.
Another main issue is the election of the parliamentary speaker as Çiçek’s mandate will expire in early July. Erdoğan is expected to ask Çiçek to continue for another two years in a bid to avoid harming the ongoing charter process. An election for the post is expected to take place on June 28, but the election procedure is expected to begin next week.
The meeting has been scheduled for 5 p.m. at the Prime Minister’s Working Office in Dolmabahçe, Istanbul.
Erdoğan had also called an emergency meeting of the highest decision-making body of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). The meeting gathering the 50-seat Central Decision and Executive Council (MKYK) started at 2 p.m. Such gatherings usually take place at the AKP headquarters in Ankara, but today’s meeting will atypically be held in Istanbul.
Erdoğan will leave the party gathering early to meet with Çiçek, according to reports.
June/08/2013
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/06/08/Thousands-of-Turks-defy-Erdogan-as-protests-rumble-on.html
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/06/08/Thousands-of-Turks-defy-Erdogan-as-protests-rumble-on.html
Erdogan to convene party leadership as Turkey protests persist
Al Arabiya
Thousands of angry Turks on Saturday joined mass anti-government protests, challenging Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s call to end the worst civil unrest to hit Turkey during his office.
From the early morning, protesters began arriving in Istanbul’s Taksim Square with food and blankets to settle in for a weekend of demonstrations, AFP said, adding to the growing tent city in nearby Gezi Park.
Erdogan has meanwhile announced he would convene his party leadership.
The prime minister is to meet with top officials from his Justice and Development Party, The Associated Press reported.
Anti-government protests in Turkey entered their ninth day on Saturday.
The protests began as a sit-in at a park in Taksim Square to prevent a redevelopment project that would replace the park with replica Ottoman barracks and other buildings.
But a violent police backlash to clear the square of protesters on May 31 outraged many, prompting the protests to spread to dozens of cities across the country.
Since then, three people have died - two protesters and a policeman - and thousands have been wounded. One protester is on life support in a hospital in Ankara, according to AP.
Banners and signs all over the park depict Erdogan as Hitler and continue to call for his resignation.
“These protests that are bordering on illegality must come to an end as of now,” Erdogan said on Friday on his return from a four-day trip to North Africa.
As protesters woke up in Gezi park on Saturday, some got organized to remove all the rubbish whilst others handed out free food from makeshift stations, Reuters news agency reported.
Protesters clashed with riot police on the outskirts of Istanbul overnight, and witnesses say at least one person had been injured, AP reported.
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2013/06/201368121910137157.html
|
| Thousands of angry Turks have taken to the streets to join mass anti-government protests which have stretched to over one week, defying Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's call to end the worst civil unrest of his decade-long rule. Protesters began arriving in Istanbul's Taksim Square From early Saturday morning with food and blankets to settle in for a weekend of demonstrations, adding to the growing tent city in nearby Gezi Park. The lingering rallies, heaviest in Turkey's main tourist hubs such as Istanbul's main Taksim Square, are starting to negatively impact business for many. Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Istanbul, said that "the whole area houses hotels, restaurants and shopping malls, and there are concerns that tourism might decline if the unrest continues. "Hotels in Istanbul are starting to feel the brunt of the crisis." Fresh demonstrations were also planned in the capital Ankara - where Erdogan is expected to be on Sunday - as the crisis entered its ninth day. "A week ago, I could never imagine myself sleeping out on the streets of Istanbul," said 22-year-old Aleyna, wrapped up under a blanket with a stray kitten, pointing to her dirty clothes. "Now I don't know how I can ever go back." Erdogan, on Saturday, was meeting in Istanbul with top officials of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) to discuss the crisis, and a deputy prime minister was due to make a speech later on Saturday. He renewed a call for an immediate end to the protests a day earlier, saying his government was open to "democratic demands", insisting that the protests were "bordering on vandalism." 'Democratic demands' The political turmoil erupted after police cracked down heavily on a small campaign to save Gezi Park from demolition, spiralling into nationwide protests against Erdogan and the AKP, seen as increasingly authoritarian. Police have used tear gas and water cannon to disperse demonstrators in clashes that have injured thousands of people and left three dead, tarnishing Turkey's image as a model of Islamic democracy. Faced with international criticism, Erdogan on Friday accused Western allies of double standards after EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule urged a "swift and transparent" probe into police abuses in Turkey, a longtime EU hopeful. Erdogan issued a sharp retort, saying those involved in a similar protest would "face a harsher response" in any European country. The premier, who has dismissed the demonstrators as "looters" manipulated by extremists, added in a more conciliatory tone: "I'm open-hearted to anyone with democratic demands." But demonstrators dug in their heels overnight, with thousands massing peacefully in a festive Taksim Square, while in other Turkish cities they took to the streets, banging pots and pans as they marched in protest. Taksim has been free of a police presence since officers relinquished the square to protesters last Saturday after the government acknowledged it was the police's heavy-handed response that lit the flame of the unrest. In a quiet night nationwide, one only Istanbul suburb saw fresh clashes, with police using tear gas and water cannon on protesters who reportedly threw fireworks and homemade bombs at them. |
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