British woman tells what's going on in Istanbul
The 2013 protests in Turkey started on 28 May 2013, initially to contest the urban development plan for Istanbul's Taksim Gezi Park. The protests were sparked by outrage at a brutal eviction of a sit-in at the park protesting against the plan. Subsequently, supporting protests and strikes took place across Turkey, protesting a wide range of concerns, at the core of which were issues of freedom of the press, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and the government's encroachment on Turkey's secularism. With no centralized leadership beyond the small organization organising the original environmental protest, the protests have been compared to the Occupy movement and the May 1968 events. After Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan dismissed the protestors as "a few çapulcu" on 2 June, the protestors reappropriated the term çapulcu (looter) for themselves (and coined the derivative "chapulling", given the meaning of "fighting for your rights"). Humor has been the primary "weapon" for the protestors The sit-in at Taksim Gezi Park was restored after police withdrew from Taksim Square on 1 June, and developed into an Occupy-like camp with thousands of protestors in tents, organising a library, medical center, food distribution and their own media. Social media played a key part in the protests, not least because much of the Turkish media downplayed the protests, particularly in the early stages. As protests continued across Turkey, particularly in Ankara, police use of tear gas and water cannon led to injuries running into thousands, including critical injuries, loss of sight, and a number of deaths. Over three thousand arrests were made. On 11 June, riot police moved back into Taksim Square. Luke Harding from The Guardian as well as Hürriyet Daily News claims that undercover police threw molotov cocktails, "staging a not very plausible 'attack' on their own for the benefit of the cameras." This claim was later rejected by the governor of Istanbul. On the evening of 15 June, following several peaceful evenings in the square including piano recitals, police moved in with tear gas and water cannon adulterated with pepper spray, and rapidly cleared and occupied the park and square. Protesters fled to the surrounding areas, and were chased by police, who assaulted local hotels and a hospital with tear gas and water cannon. Protests continued in the following days. The initial protests in Istanbul at the end of May were led by about 50 environmentalists opposing the replacement of Taksim Gezi Park with a shopping mall and possible residence as well as reconstruction of the historic Taksim Military Barracks (demolished in 1940) over the adjacent Taksim Square.The protests developed into riots when a group occupying the park was attacked with tear gas and water cannons by police. The subjects of the protests then broadened beyond the development of Taksim Gezi Park into wider anti-government demonstrations. The protests also spread to other cities in Turkey, and protests were seen in other countries with significant Turkish communities, including European countries, the U.S. and elsewhere. Protesters took to Taksim Square in Istanbul and to streets in Ankara as well as İzmir, Bursa, Antalya, Eskişehir, Balıkesir, Edirne, Mersin, Adana, İzmit, Konya, Kayseri, Samsun, Antakya,Trabzon, Isparta, Tekirdağ, Bodrum, and Mardin. The overall number of protesters involved was reported to be at least 2.5 million by the Turkish Interior Ministry over the 3 weeks from the start of the events.The hashtag #OccupyGezi trended in social media. On 3 June unions announced strikes for 4 and 5 June. Some Turkish-American supporters of the protests took a full page advertisement in the New York Times on 7 June co-created and crowd-funded within days by thousands of people on the Internet. The ad and the New York Times drew criticism from the Turkish Prime Minister, necessitating the newspaper to respond. The range of the protesters was noted as being broad, encompassing both right- and left-wing individuals.The protesters' complaints ranged from the original local environmental concerns to such issues as the authoritarianism of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, curbs on alcohol,a recent row about kissing in public, and the war in Syria.

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