Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday said there were "terrorist activities" in Paris, referring to Yellow Vests protesters, and accused international media of not broadcasting the incidents, unlike what they did during the 2013 Gezi protests in Turkey.
"Right now, acts of terror are happening in Paris, does the international media say anything about it? The world is silent and does not see Paris. Why do not they see Paris? They do not want Paris to be tainted. The world is following these news whether you like it or not," Erdoğan said in a symposium.
"During Gezi events, international media continuously presented Taksim [Gezi Park], didn’t they?" he said.
In 2013, Erdoğan's AKP government started demolishing Taksim Gezi Park, one of the few green areas left in central İstanbul, meeting with a mass resistance known as Gezi Resistance or June Resistance. Calling Erdoğan and AKP government to resignation, these nationwide protests were targeting increasingly pro-marketist, authoritarian and reactionary rules of the government.
For nearly two weeks, the so-called Yellow Vests protests have seen thousands take to the streets across France over an increase in diesel and gasoline prices. One of the most frequent complaints from the Yellow Vests is French President Emmanuel Macron's perceived elitism, as well as his pro-business policies since taking office in May last year.
The spokesperson for the Turkish Foreign Ministry on Sunday said that the ongoing intervention by police in France against protesters was worrisome, calling for restraint and the tensions to settle. "The disproportionate force used against the demonstrators and the increase in the aggression of French security forces is worrisome. We believe in the necessity of dialogue in democracies and we call for moderation for the cooling down of the incidents," the spokesperson said.
101 people were detained during the demonstrations on Champs-Elysees Street, the French police department announced.
THE PROTESTERS DEMANDED TO MARCH TO MACRON’S OFFICE
Over 3 thousand police officers were assigned to Elysee Palace in order to prevent the demonstrators to approach to the palace where Macron's office is located. 50 people were injured due to the intervention of police with water cannons and pepper gas.
Over 300 thousand people have joined the ongoing protests since last week. Two people lost their lives while over 606 people were injured in the demonstrations last week, French authorities said.
The price of gasoline increased by 15 percent while the price of diesel fuel increased by percent 23 since the beginning of the year. New price increases for gasoline and diesel fuel is expected to be applied in the following year in France.
