Elif Shafak on Imamoglu: 'This is a breaking point'

Renowned author Elif Shafak wrote an article for the Financial Times regarding the removal and arrest of CHP's presidential candidate Ekrem Imamoglu from his post as Mayor of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) as part of a corruption investigation. Stating that the protests in Turkey, led by young people, are hopeful, Shafak said, "A new generation is protesting Imamoglu's arrest by finding clever and creative ways."

According to the report translated by Independent Türkçe, Shafak pointed out that according to the World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders in 2023, Turkey ranked 165th out of 180 countries, and that many media workers, academics, and human rights activists have been imprisoned.

Shafak stated that Imamoglu's university diploma was cancelled and he was arrested because he is the biggest rival of President and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and that millions of people have taken action against this move both in Turkey and abroad.

The 53-year-old author said that major demonstrations were held in 55 out of 81 cities and that women played a key role in them:

"No matter what background they come from, all women in Turkey know that when a country slides toward autocracy, one of the first losses will be women's rights. Erdogan's AKP withdrew from the Istanbul Convention, an international agreement protecting victims of domestic violence. This happened in a country where femicides and violence against women are on the rise."

Shafak emphasized that young people are leading the protests, recalling demonstrators dressed as dervishes, in Pikachu costumes, and reading Jean-Jacques Rousseau in front of the police, as well as Berkay Gezgin, the creator of the slogan "Everything will be very beautiful." She said, "There is a new generation that wants to live with dignity, freedom, and democracy, and they want change."

Shafak also used the phrase "While we should be thanking him for his commitment to culture and art, he was thrown into prison" for the imprisoned IBB Deputy Secretary General Mahir Polat, who has several health problems.

Shafak ended her article with the following words:

"This feels like a breaking point. For many years, Turkey has been going backwards; its democratic institutions and norms have been severely damaged. However, we had the ballot box, and voting had value. Turkey has one of the highest voter turnout rates among OECD countries. But now, with the unfair imprisonment of the regime's most popular rival, the ballot box is also in danger. Turkey needs democracy and deserves it, not authoritarianism."

News Source: 12punto