Rejected by AKP-MHP votes two years ago: Türkan Saylan's name given to the street where she lived in Beşiktaş

In the third session of the July meeting of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Assembly, a decision was made to name Karakavak Street in Beşiktaş-Arnavutköy after Prof. Dr. Türkan Saylan. Following the decision, Istanbul Beşiktaş Mayor Rıza Akpolat installed the street sign bearing Türkan Saylan's name.

In a statement on his official X account, Akpolat said, "We waited a long time for this street to get its official sign. We showed strong resistance and finally succeeded! From today on, our teacher Türkan Saylan's name will live on this street. The light she spread will illuminate our path forever."

WHAT HAD HAPPENED?

During the December 16, 2021, session of the IMM Assembly, the issue of why the proposal to name a street after Türkan Saylan had been held in committee for a year was brought to the agenda.

AKP Group Spokesperson Faruk Gökkuş stated, "Türkan Saylan is someone who does not respect the common values of the majority of society. For this reason, we do not mince our words. You can shout as much as you want; as long as we are here, as long as there is an AK Party majority, the names of people like Türkan Saylan who divide this society will not be kept alive in public spaces."

In March 2022, the proposal to name the street after Saylan was brought back to the IMM Assembly's agenda and was rejected by the majority AKP-MHP votes.

The proposal, which was reviewed again in the final session of the July meetings, was this time accepted with the majority votes of the CHP. The AKP-MHP group voted "no," opposing the naming of the street after Saylan.

News Source: 12punto