As last year [2], May Day saw clashes between workers and police in Istanbul and other Turkish cities. In Istanbul, police fired tear gas and water cannons to prevent workers from marching to Taksim Square where they planned to hold a mass gathering. A total of 530 were detained by police, with 38 reported injured in the city. The Turkish government rejected petitions to lift the decades-long ban and open Taksim for celebrations. The Labor Unions Confederation (DISK), Confederation of Public Sector Unions (KESK) and Turkish Confederation of Labor (Turk-Is) decided jointly to march on the square in defiance of the ban. Street clashes were also reported between police and followers of the Freedom and Solidarity Party (ODP) in Ankara. (Hurriyet [3], May 2)
See our last post on Turkey [4].
