When the humble “Occupy Gezi” (Occupy Promenade Park) protest in Istanbul’s Taksim Square was brutally attacked by police on May 31, protests spread like wildfire throughout other cities and the Turkish left was in the thick of it.
In the early days of the protest, Sirri Sureyya Onder -- national MP for the umbrella organistion of the Turkish-Kurdish left, the Peoples’ Democratic Congress (HDK) -- lay his body, with others, in front of bulldozers to stop them destroying the park’s 70 year old trees.
When he spoke to the media, Sureyya Onder was angry. He asked why the “idiot” alternative mayoral candidates were not there to defend this small green pocket of the Taksim. When the police attacked in the early hours of May 31 Onder again lay in front of the bulldozers. He was one of the first casualties to be taken to hospital.
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Two days earlier, the headline in the socialist daily Evrensel highlighted the potential 300 million Turkish Lira that multinational companies stood to make from construction of a new, third, bridge across the Bosphorus between Asia and Europe. On the day, Turkish Prime Minster Tayyip Erdogan laid the foundation stone at a launch ceremony, Evrensel reported the project would require the destruction of 2.5 million trees.
A third international airport and countless other destructive urban development plans of the Islamist ruling class -- described as a “class of looters”.
The Turkish left is well aware of environmental issues and very active around them. There have been hundreds of demonstrations by villagers against hydroelectric dams lead by the left. Even in the midst of a civil war environment, Kurdish people have been organizing against the military’s burning of forests -- to uncover Kurdish guerillas hiding there.
With 53% support, the Islamist government is arrogant. It has groomed ordinary people’s Islamic beliefs, arrested fascist generals (one in three generals are now in prison) and coup leaders, started peace negotiations with the Kurdish freedom movements and won three elections in a row.
“The decision is made. The project (demolition of Gezi Park) will continue," said Tayyip Erdogan after four days of Taksim clashes. “If you gather 200 000 people, I will gather 1 million".
But Erdogan has stumbled recently. His attempt to ban abortion provoked a huge backlash. His vision for a religious Turkish youth was badly received. He foolishly suggested that ayran (a watery yoghurt drink) should be the “national drink” ahead of raki (the beloved aniseed-based spirit) and introduced a law that banned sales of alcohol between 10pm and 6am. His mass jailing of journalists have also been unpopular.
When he laid the foundation of the third Bosphorus bridge last week he announced it would be called the Sultan Selim.
Selim was a 16th century Ottoman emperor who butchered thousands of Allevis, ensuring that Turkey became, and remains, dominated by Sunni Muslims. He ignored the feelings of the estimated 20 million Allevis living in Turkey today.
The chain of clashes spreading across Turkey from Gezi Park is a huge blow to the PM’s arrogance. For the first time he has appeared in defensive mode and “sincerely” asked protesters to go home.
Taksim Square has a special place in the heart of the Turkish left as a symbol of resistance. The left call it “May Day Square.” On May Day in 1977 the square was bathed in the blood of dozens of workers and students who were among more than 100,000 people marching with red flags that day.
Unknown killers opened fire at crowd from top of buildings surrounding the square. It remains an unsolved crime. The Turkish left believes the perpetrators were NATO’s clandestine anti-communist paramilitary, Operation Gladio.
The Turkish government has banned May Day marches ever since and every May Day there have been hundreds of clashes between police and demonstrators who want to march to Taksim Square.
The interior minister admitted during an answer to an opposition MPs question in parliament that on May Day this year Turkish Police sprayed 14 tons of gas on demonstrators .
Gezi Park resistance has brought much needed Turkish Kurdish unity to the Left opposition. Kurdish cities have joined to the solidarity protests. Kurdish, Turkish, secularists, social democrats and nationalists merged in the clashes against police brutality. The left, with its “Taksim passion”, has played a leading role in the protests.
The mainstream medias’ blackout of protests –- which is unprecedented -- has brought leftist media to the fore. Leftist Hayat television has been covering the protests non-stop.
There has been a protest outside the headquarters of national broadcaster NTV for turning a blind eye to the protests. Benjamin Harvey, Turkey Bureau Chief for Bloomberg tweeted “Turks who aren't in Istanbul and don't get their news from the Internet may have no idea anything is even going on here now”.
The Gezi Park resistance is a turning point for the people of Turkey. After many decades they feel their power again. It has reminded the left that they can lead the people’s spontaneous action.
[I. Zekeriya Ayman is a Kurdish Turkish leftist living in Melbourne.]
