For those of you who have not been watching my
live feed from Istanbul's Taksim Park, the clashes between police and protesters are still going on. Here's an
update.
"The police intervened to dismantle barricades," Mr. Mutlu said.
"Some individuals have clashed with the police…. We are trying to
normalize the scene in Taksim. We are not going to intervene in Gezi
Park."
The governor said authorities "will not allow a siege" around the
statue in the square of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of Turkey's
republic, and a nearby cultural center, vowing not to allow protest
material back around the statue.
"The Ataturk statue and cultural center have become like an
advertisement board," he said. "It's very bad for the image of Turkey
and Istanbul." The governor said authorities are committed "to be very
careful and sensitive in handling the situation."
Forgive me for saying this Governor, but seeing riot police beat people and spray them with water canons and tear gas on my computer screen is much worse for the image of Istanbul and Turkey than a bunch of posters covering a statue. But then, what do I know? I've never been out of the airport in Istanbul anyway.
"We have been waiting for this to happen," said protester Ugur Hacan,
a 24-year-old artistic director for TV series and movies, who was
sleeping at the park with friends when police entered the square.
"As long as the police don't interfere with Gezi Park, the protests
will continue. I believe more people might come after this action," Mr.
Hacan said. He and three other friends at the park said police didn't
confront the protesters directly.
Taksim Square subway was still functioning on Tuesday, and some
commuters emerging from the metro were caught in the melee. "We need to
talk rather than fight each other. I hope this can be resolved quickly,"
said Can Ozdemir, a hotel waiter, as his eyes streamed from the tear
gas.
Speaking after a weekly cabinet meeting in Ankara Monday, Deputy
Prime Minister Bulent Arinc said Mr. Erdogan would meet some
demonstration representatives Wednesday and others at another time,
without providing additional details.
Remember what the Iranian election looked like in 2009? That's what the next Turkish election will look like...
Do not check a Turkish Gezi Park events.
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