Ankara Governor's Office had denied permission: New statement from Özgür Özel regarding the march
Speaking after his visit to Anıtkabir, CHP leader Özgür Özel reacted to the Ankara Governor's Office's refusal to permit the march, stating, "We are facing a government that is truly disconnected from the country and has lost its senses, attempting to impose bans through the Governor's Office."
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State officials, led by Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) Numan Kurtulmuş, attended the ceremony held at Anıtkabir for the 105th anniversary of the opening of the TBMM and the April 23 National Sovereignty and Children's Day.
Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Özgür Özel posed for photos with children after the ceremony.
Özel later made statements to journalists.
Reacting to the Ankara Governor's Office's refusal to permit the march, Özel said, "The Chairman of the party that founded the TBMM will walk from the 1st Parliament to Anıtkabir, and we are facing a government that is truly disconnected from the country and has lost its senses, attempting to impose a ban on even that through the Governor's Office."
Özel added, "At 17:00, we will walk with the people of Ankara from the Parliament we founded to our founder, Atatürk."
ANKARA GOVERNOR'S OFFICE HAD DENIED PERMISSION
The Ankara Governor's Office had not granted permission for the CHP's march from the 1st Parliament to Anıtkabir.
"Due to the historical and cultural mission of the 1st TBMM building and its surroundings, it is anticipated that it will be visited by our public, especially students, with high participation on the occasion of April 23 National Sovereignty and Children's Day. It is foreseen that closing the area would prevent our public's visits. Furthermore, because the requested location has a heavy traffic load, any meeting held there would disrupt traffic flow, negatively affecting the city's entire traffic and causing grievances for our citizens. Additionally, since the area where the meeting and demonstration march is requested is not among the areas determined and announced within the scope of the Law on Meetings and Demonstration Marches No. 2911, the request for an activity in the nature of a rally has not been deemed appropriate. It has been notified to the Provincial Presidency that if a request is made for one of the areas properly determined and announced by our Governor's Office, all kinds of assistance and convenience will be provided by our Governor's Office."