Istanbul, Türkiye – The smell of tear gas continued on Saratchain Square in Istanbul, where thousands gathered during the weekend to protest The arrest of the city’s mayorEKREM IMAMOGLU, outside the municipality headquarters.

the Popular politicianThe main opposition party chosen by Turkiye A candidate for the upcoming presidential electionsHe was arrested on March 19. Since then, the protests erupted daily, as the demonstrators now called on the resignation of the government.

For IMAMOGLU supporters, the decision to detention and remove him from his position is the leader of Turkiye for a long time, Tayyip Erdogan, stressing his grip on power.

For the government and its supporters, it is simply the judiciary.

Cinar Ileri, 28, attends the protests as a “neutral observer”.

“I look, I do not support Imamoglu in any way. I did not vote for him. But I believe that what happened is not fair to any politician because the legal decision is not just a legal issue, it is a political issue,” said Eilei.

The allegations of corruption were plagued by municipalities through the political spectrum in Turki and were the subject of a report submitted to the Turkish parliament, which argues that insufficient checks and balances were imposed on its warriors.

However, some believe that the government focuses on politicians opposing to the extent that it raises doubts about its commitment to justice, with the accusation that the authorities aim to reshape the political scene.

Those close to the government have rejected these allegations. Hillel Kaplan, a journalist close to the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AK party, who is written in Sabah newspaper, has dumped directly at the opposition Party of Republican (CHP).

She said in a member of the Imoglu, who was reported to be a member of the CHP company, “she said.

Kaplan said that the claim that the government targeted Imamoglu because it sees it as a political threat that was not more than a blatant lie.

The slowdown in the protests

IMamoglu, who has won successive mayors in Istanbul, is widely considered a political competitor in Erdogan.

Erdogan has been in power since 2003 and won the latest presidential elections in 2023.

In parallel with Imamoglu, Erdogan was also a popular mayor of Estanbul in the 1990s, before being imprisoned in 1999.

On the day before its referee, Istanbul University canceled the university degree of IMAMOGLU, which it said was falsely obtained – obtaining a valid degree is a prerequisite for candidacy for the presidency.

“I will continue to attend the demonstrations to find out what is happening – to find out what people feel, and what they think. Also, what this could lead to,” said Elery.

“After four days of the demonstrations, I feel a dynamic slowdown in the protests,” he added.

“On Sunday night, I was there. In my opinion, nothing had happened. On the day when he was officially arrested, there was not much enthusiasm. And when people compared this to the protests of Gezi Park, I don’t think they even approach the influence and power,” Elry said, referring to the 2013 counter -protest movement.

“We want to change, we must protest.”

The protests come during the holy month of Ramadan, and many mosques will be filled in the Fatih area, which is the center of protests, with worshipers until late in the evening to obtain the night prayer.

To date, there is little indication that many population joins night protests.

In Anit Park, in a stone’s goal from the headquarters of Istanbul Municipality, groups of elderly men sit on seats, and discuss politics while they are waiting for the day of fasting.

Most of them appear to be unintended by the riot police in the stone goal or water cannon throughout the area.

When asked whether they would join the protests, they simply said they would not do that.

But for Ali, a 22 -year -old student, joining the protests has become almost a night ritual.

“I don’t think Imamoglu is the main issue here,” Ali says. “Yes, his current situation represents a big problem, but we all say that we do not care about the names – the imam, the Republican People’s Party, or any other political figures. We are only tired. They are tired of the illegal AK decisions,” referring to the Erdogan Party, who was now in power for 24 years.

He added: “We care about our lives and our freedom, and this is the most important, and our future. Yes, I love Imamoglu, but I do not love him. It is the best option between them, and he always tries to improve things. I think that if the government allows him, he will achieve more.”

Since the protests began, the Turkish authorities have detained more than 1,100 people and asked the X social media platform to prevent some accounts. While the platform objected to the request of “more than 700”, it also suspended many of the opposition -related accounts, which were reported to be linked to university activists who organize protests.

Erdogan described the protests as the “violence movement” and said that the Republican People’s Party will be responsible for police injuries and property damage, and urged them to stop the “stirring” of the public.

Ali is not upset. He said: “I think if we want to change, we should protest. If we are sitting and waiting, nothing will change. That is why I am very happy because we can protest, and I am very happy because we are all together now – not just CHP supporters.”

He added: “The protests mean everything for me because I always thought that we all must rise for our rights. As a student and a member of Gen Z, I know that we assume that we do not care about anything, but they are shocked now because we care about our rights, and we will not give up fighting for them.”

“Where is justice?”

Residents in the neighborhoods that largely support the opposition in Istanbul have tried utensils and pans from their windows at night from the next day the arrest of IMamoglu.

“Where is justice? Where is democracy?” Forekan, a gym coach in an exhibition exhibition area in Pesckets. While he was hitting his bowl from the window.

Although he protested the night window and dozens of others on the street, Furkan is skeptical that this is a turning point for movement or wider to the government. “I can’t see the fire yet, I cannot feel energy on the streets. Yes, people feel upset with what happened, but this is not enough.”

It is easy to see why this might be the case. On the other side of the Bosphorus in the conservative Okudar neighborhood, life continues largely as usual. There are no protests here, no night noise of utensils and pans.

Abu Allah, 28, is one of a group of friends in Okudar who do not protest. “It does not seem logical to me to go out and defend a person who has exposed his corruption,” says Abu Allah, referring to many corruptions suspended against Imamoglu.

In 2019, Abu Dodallah says, he had some sympathy for the mayor who is now when IMamoglu won his first employment elections after a controversial restart.

“But the situation today is completely different,” he said. “There is no feeling of the victim because the supporters of the AK party believe that the Imamoglu is involved in both corruption and the transfer of money to terrorists.”

He added: “I think the protests will continue to decline. In the coming days, with the end of the end of Ramadan holidays, people will return to their hometown. This will not turn into a mass movement. The crowd will easily forget those who praised it.

A short trip from Uskudar, in the Kadikoy neighborhood, the protest ended during the weekend with the return of people to cafes, bars and restaurants.

Mesut, 32, who was attending these protests, said that she is generally more “unorganized”.

“What I see is mostly young people between the ages of 20 and 25 years, and university students. They are not part of any organization. Some of them may be members of left -wing groups, but most of them have almost no affiliation.”

“For this reason, there is no clear organization or vision,” Misut said. “People are only angry. Young people are angry, and I have it. But I do not see any organized or planned road map for this activity.”