On June 14, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the leader of Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), announced that he and his supporters were to embark on a march from Ankara to Istanbul, a distance of 450 kilometres. What is now known as a “Justice March” has been organized to protest the arrest of a former journalist and CHP deputy Enis Berberoğlu, who was sentenced to 25 years in jail on spying charges. [...]
Kılıçdaroğlu has often been criticized for his passivity and inability to exercise an influential opposition against the anti-democratic moves of the Erdogan government, especially after the controversial constitutional referendum of April 16, which turned the Turkish parliamentary democracy into an authoritarian presidential system. The referendum was won by a narrow margin and, due to the scandal of “unstamped ballots”, half of the population in the “No camp” has trouble believing in the veracity of the referendum results. [...]
“Justice March” marks the first instance in the history of the Republic, where the leader of the main opposition party embarks on a protest march of such a long distance. For many Turks, who believe that they were treated unjustly by the State of Emergency and who cannot take any legal action because of it, the adalet march has become an event of unique significance.
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