TURKEY: Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan defends security measures taken against protesters and says damage caused by recent clashes exceeds 100 million Turkish lira ($53 million)

Record ID: 217667

  • Title: TURKEY: Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan defends security measures taken against protesters and says damage caused by recent clashes exceeds 100 million Turkish lira ($53 million)
  • Date: 18th June 2013
  • Summary: ANKARA, TURKEY (JUNE 18, 2013) (REUTERS) TURKISH PRIME MINISTER TAYYIP ERDOGAN SPEAKING IN PARLIAMENT AUDIENCE LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (Turkish) TURKISH PRIME MINISTER, TAYYIP ERDOGAN, SAYING: "We did whatever we had to in a state of law. We have cleared out Taksim Square and Gezi Park from these invaders. You know they have destroyed everything. We are planting trees and f
  • Embargoed: 3rd July 2013 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Turkey
  • Country: Turkey
  • Topics: Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA2KQZBKOUVG3M8W4A7QYEN8NP
  • Story Text: Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan struck a defiant tone in the face of the biggest public challenge to his 10-year rule on Tuesday (June 18), after clashes erupted in cities across the country as people protested against his leadership.
    Turkey has been rocked by demonstrations that began in and around Istanbul's Taksim Square and turned violent after police sought to clear protesters using teargas and water cannon.
    Erdogan defended his decision to take a tough stand against the demonstrators.

    "We did whatever we had to in a state of law. We have cleared out Taksim Square and Gezi Park from these invaders. You know they have destroyed everything. We are planting trees and flowers again," Erdogan said in his weekly address at Turkish parliament on Tuesday.
    Images of violent clashes between protesters and riot police have dented Turkey's reputation for stability in a volatile Middle East. Furthermore western countries have expressed concern about police treatment of protesters against Erdogan, whose authority rests on three successive election victories, the last achieved with 50 percent support.
    Critics accuse the prime minister of disregarding the half of the population who did not vote for him, some of whom accuse him of conniving to subvert the secular constitution and create an order based on religious principles - something Erdogan denies.

    "We have unveiled this game and destroyed their trap. We have trashed this scenario before it was implemented," Erdogan told parliament.
    The unrest began as a small action by environmentalists opposed to government plans to build replica Ottoman-era barracks on Gezi Park adjoining Taksim Park, one of the few green spaces in the teeming city of Istanbul.
    But it has broadened to a protest movement against what Erdogan's critics say is his domineering style and tendency to meddle in people's individual lives - a tendency some opponents say is driven by Erdogan's religious beliefs.
    The consequences have been costly, said Erdogan.

    "According to the initial investigations, the damage exceeds 100 million turkish liras," he said.
    The protests unnerved markets, with the lira currency hitting near-two-year lows last week and 10-year bond yields climbing above eight percent, but markets have since settled close to levels before demonstrations began.
    The unrest has eased off since Istanbul saw some of the worst clashes so far over the weekend, following the pattern of the last three weeks when violence flared up at the weekends before calming during the week.
    The unrest has left four people dead overall, including one policeman, and about 7,500 injured, according to the Turkish Medical Association.
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