Demonstrations against Transport Price Increase in Ankara

Turkey's capital Ankara is dominated by a wave of protests against a raise in public transport. The people demand to cancel the rise imposed on 1 January. On Friday (7 January), hundreds of people attended the latest protest and boycotted public transport vehicles for one hour.

The protest action was scheduled during the Friday night rush hour between 6.30 and 7.30 pm. The protest was attended by members of the Ankara Medical Chamber, the Ankara Regional Representation of the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions (DİSK), The Platform for the Ankara Branches of Confederation of Trade Unions of Public Employees (KESK), The Ankara Provincial Co-ordination Board of the Turkey Union of Chambers of Architects and Engineers (TMMOB), the Federation of Consumer Associations (TÜDEF), the Community Centres organization, the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP), the Labour Party (EMEP), the Freedom and Solidarity Party (ÖDP), the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP), the Socialist Party of the Oppressed (ESP), the Socialist Party, the Students Collective, Dev-Lis, the Social Rights Association (SHD), Focus (ODAK), the Alınteri Newspaper, the Leverage organization and the People's Team.

Hundreds of protestors clogged the central Ziya Gökalp Avenue and prevented access to bus and metro stations.

Equipped with banners reading "Cancel the Raise for Transport" the demonstrators walked along Meşrutiyet Avenue while chanting slogans to express their protest. They issued a press release in front of  the Ankara Provincial Presidency of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

"10 percent raise"

The press release was read out by Ramazan Pektaş, Secretary of the TMMOB Ankara Provincial Co-ordination Board. He stated that Ankara was the city with the most expensive public transport and criticized the media for reporting on a five percent raise whereas the actual raise amounted to ten percent. "We wonder about the calculation made by some press organs who are supporting the Metropolitan Municipality and who had five percent as a result", he said.

"Metropolitan municipality makes the public pay for their losses"

Pektaş argued that the Metropolitan Municipality was making a 10 million lira loss each month and that the executives were trying to mislead the public. He emphasized that he municipality was trying to make the people pay for the losses caused by subcontracting services and by the "attitude of the ineffective local administration".

The press release furthermore criticized the insufficiency of the overpriced public transport system in the capital, its obsolete situation and its network structure that does not comply with modern needs. It was furthermore criticized that the construction of the tube has been lying idle for years.

"Transportation is a right that cannot be commercialized"

The press release finished with the claim, "The people from Ankara do not want to listen to fairy tales about Ankara having become a European city; they do not want to watch their city being destroyed by multi-level junctions; they do not want to be treated like customers and they do not want to use the most expensive transport as a result of arbitrary raises. The people want a contemporary local administration and their right to a public transport that is accessible, cheap and sufficient" (BB/VK)