An Istanbul court has ordered the release of 102 young people, mostly students, who were detained during protests against the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on 19 March. The protests, which were met with significant police repression, saw participants express their opposition to İmamoğlu’s arrest and wider government actions.
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The court’s decision on Thursday also lifted the house arrest orders of 25 other people involved in the protests. The detainees were charged with “unarmed participation in an unlawful assembly and demonstration” and “failure to disperse despite warnings”, but the court found that these charges did not constitute serious offences under Turkey’s Criminal Procedure Code. The ruling also took into account the fact that many of those detained are university students, some of whom were in the middle of their exams.
Among those released is Berkay Gezgin, known for coining Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu’s famous campaign slogan “Her şey çok güzel olacak” (“Everything will be very beautiful”). His involvement in the protests and subsequent arrest highlights the role of young people in the demonstrations, many of whom have been vocal in their opposition to the arrest and wider government policies.
The protests have led to more than 1,900 arrests across the country, with university students playing a major role in organising demonstrations and campus protests. These youth-led protests have become a symbol of resistance to government policies and the growing authoritarianism under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s administration.
Reports have also emerged detailing concerns about the conditions in which many of the detained demonstrators have been held. Several reports have described instances of mistreatment and torture-like conditions in prisons, sparking widespread public outrage. Health problems among the detainees have also been highlighted in court, with documents presented to support the claim that some are in need of medical attention.
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The first trial for the detained youths will take place on 20 June as the legal process continues.
