Friday, Turkey's Minister of Justice Bekir Bozdağ said that no one is detained due to saying "no" in the presidential referendum.
“I would resign even if there is one person detained for saying ‘no’ in referendum” Bozdağ said, despite more than one hundred citizens taken into custody in “no” campaigns.
Bekir Bozdağ claimed; “They are trying to create a perception as if AKP is labelling 'no' voters as terrorists. They lynch the ones who join 'yes' campaigns. They said athletes, artists and they’ve done terrible things. There is a weird peer pressure. I would resign if there is one person detained for saying ‘no’ in the referendum. There is no such thing, not a single example. What is going on right now, there are some fictions. Different acts, different things. But then they said ‘this man is detained because he said 'no'."
Despite the statement of Bekir Bozdağ, more than one hundred citizens were taken into custody during the campaigns for “no”.
More than 50 members of the Communist Party of Turkey were detained during their political activity while they were handing out the statement titled “enough”. Flyers were seized and one TKP office was raided.
Another shop owner in the large city of Bursa was taken into custody just because he claimed he would vote “no”. Owner was released after the court hearing.
Sera Kadıgil, Party Council member of the main opposition social democrat party CHP, is taken into custody after publishing her “no” video and criminal charges with the demand of 3 years sentence are prepared in a flash.
Three members of the leftist “Halkevleri” organisation were tried to be taken into custody while they were singing in a ferry to support “no” campaign, but other passengers stopped the police in İstanbul. Police also attacked other left wing activists in Kadiköy district during their campaign called “Let’s unite in ‘no’!” During the attack, Labour Party member and Revolutionary Party central committee member Gözde Tekneci are taken into custody.
An armed assault occurred during the “no” forum which was held in Maltepe district of İstanbul on 29th of January and one person got injured.
