Competing demonstations
June 16, 2013Erdogan held his Istanbul rally Sunday 10 kilometers (six miles) from Gezi Park which protesters had occupied as part of a two-week protest to prevent its redevelopment.
In a much larger park buses unloaded scores of supporters of Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) for a rally billed as a show of strength in response to the unrest.
Hundreds of riot police continued to fire tear gas and jets of water during the day at groups of demonstrators who had been evicted from Gezi Park overnight.
Earlier, police in uniform and plainclothes sealed off Istanbul's central Taksim Square and adjacent Gezi Park, where crews worked through the night to clear away all traces of the protesters' camp.
The protests began two weeks ago as an environmental sit-in to prevent a development project at Gezi Park, but anger over riot police tactics with tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets, developed into a broader expression of discontent with Erdogan's style of government.
Istanbul's governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu said on Sunday the square was off-limits to the public for the time being, and nobody would be allowed to gather. More riot police from the Turkish provinces have been flown in according to local media reports.
"Any call for Taksim will not contribute to peace and security. After the current environment becomes stable, they can continue exercising their democratic rights. Under current circumstances we will not allow any gathering," Mutlu said.
Protestors had called for another demonstration in Taksim Square for Sunday afternoon, but the area was within a tight police cordon, with passers-by subjected to identity checks and bag searches.
The Confederation of Public Workers' Unions (KESK) said it would call a nationwide strike on Monday.
jm/dr (AP, Reuters)