Turkey’s opposition faces barrage of arrests, investigations

Turkish authorities have ramped up investigations and detentions of opposition figures, with three such actions today alone, raising concerns about a widening crackdown on dissent against the government.

The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) youth branch head was briefly detained for a social media post about the Istanbul prosecutor, the party says, and a judicial probe was launched against CHP Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu – a probable future presidential challenger – for criticizing the detention.

Also today, the leader of the far right opposition Victory Party, Umit Ozdag, was detained for allegedly insulting Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.

The CHP has long criticized the Istanbul prosecutor and the judiciary as a tool that Erdogan’s ruling AK Party (AKP) uses to silence opposition. It has called for early national elections to “settle scores,” though analysts say a vote is unlikely to be held so far ahead of schedule.

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc dismissed the accusation that the judiciary is politicized. He says the judiciary is independent and the Istanbul prosecutor is acting in line with the constitution.