Hundreds of Thousands Gather in Support of Imprisoned Istanbul Mayor

In continuation of the protests against the imprisonment of Istanbul's mayor, on Saturday, April 9, a massive crowd once again took to the streets in the Maltepe district of the Asian side of the city in support of him. Reuters reported the number of participants as 'hundreds of thousands' and described it as one of the largest protest gatherings in Turkey in over a decade. On Saturday, people came out again in support of Ekrem İmamoğlu while the government of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been attempting to suppress protesters for more than ten days. Since the beginning of these protests in Turkey, nearly two thousand people have been arrested by police and security forces, according to Reuters. Ekrem İmamoğlu, the 54-year-old mayor of Istanbul, was arrested two weeks ago along with dozens of others, including politicians, journalists, and entrepreneurs, as part of a corruption investigation. He has been accused of 'forming and managing a criminal organization, receiving bribes, and extortion,' but has denied all charges. Özgür Özel, the leader of the Republican People's Party, which serves as the opposition to Erdoğan's government, called the accusations against İmamoğlu 'baseless, unfounded, and without evidence' during the massive rally last week in front of the Istanbul Municipality building. He also stated at the Saturday rally that millions of people in Turkey are demanding the release of Ekrem İmamoğlu and early presidential elections. He described the charges against the imprisoned mayor as 'groundless and politically motivated.' At the rally, a letter from Ekrem İmamoğlu was read to the protesting crowd, stating: 'They can keep me in prison and put me on trial as long as they want, but the nation has shown that it will destroy all traps and schemes.' İmamoğlu's arrest is viewed as a political move to eliminate him from the presidential race. However, the government insists that the country's courts operate independently. His arrest and that of others have intensified political tensions in Turkey and sparked widespread protests in at least 55 provinces. Some polls indicate that İmamoğlu is more popular than Erdoğan. After two presidential terms, Erdoğan has reached a legal limit for re-nomination. If he wishes to run again, he must either hold early elections or change the constitution.