Nearly 200 detained as women attempt anti-violence protest in İstanbul
İstanbul Taksim Square has been placed under heavy police lockdown following a ban on demonstrations for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.
Despite the governor's ban, women’s organizations called for a gathering at 7 pm in Taksim’s Tünel Square.
Police have sealed off all side streets leading to İstiklal Avenue with barricades since midday, blocking access to the central pedestrian thoroughfare and evacuating the area.
Several women apprehended
Groups of women who attempted to march towards Tünel Square were pushed back and dispersed into side alleys. In Şahkulu Street, several women were apprehended.
🟣#Karaköy'de müdahale devam ediyor
— bianet (@bianet_org) November 25, 2024
📹 : @alidnc4 pic.twitter.com/dXtWPmrlKU
Women gather near Karaköy pier
As the police didn't allow gatherings in the vicinity of Taksim, groups of women moved towards the shoreline and gathered near Karaköy Pier. Police intervened in some side streets as women descended from Galata to Karaköy, detaining several individuals.
Police shoving women with shields as they were walking towards Karaköy.
🟣Galata’dan #Karaköy’e inmek isteyen kadınlara polis şiddet uyguladı
— bianet (@bianet_org) November 25, 2024
📹 : @alidnc4 pic.twitter.com/mXSzq3ISYl
Near the pier, senior members of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Congress (HDK) and Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), including HDK Co-Spokesperson Meral Danış Beştaş and DEM Party Co-Chair Tülay Hatimoğulları, joined the demonstrators.
Protesters chanted the Kurdish slogan "Jin, jiyan, azadî" (Women, life, freedom), echoing calls for women’s rights and resistance.
‘End the bans’
Speaking at the gathering, DEM Party Co-Chair Hatimoğulları addressed the authorities:
“It is unacceptable to ban the slogan ‘Jin, jiyan, azadî,’ which originated from Kurdish women and has resonated globally. Today, this slogan echoed across Turkey and Kurdistan, and it will continue to do so. Bans achieve nothing. We will keep fighting for our bodies, labor, and freedom. Long live women’s solidarity.”
HDK Co-Spokesperson Danış-Beştaş highlighted the resilience of the protesters:
“Thousands of women behind me have overcome countless barricades and searches to be here. The ban on İstiklal Avenue is a clear admission of fear. Across Turkey, from Kurdish regions to other provinces, millions of women are chanting ‘Jin, jiyan, azadî,’ defending their rights and voices.
"The AKP-MHP coalition will lose against women. As HDK, we will continue to expand this struggle in neighborhoods, streets, and across the country. Women’s resistance is here to stay.”
After statements from politicians and women's groups, the demonstration ended with slogans. At least 169 people were detained in total, according to Meopotamya Agency (MA).
#25Kasım 🟣 Karaköy İskelesi'nde kadınlar ve LGBTİ+'lar hep bir ağızdan haykırdı:
— bianet (@bianet_org) November 25, 2024
📢 "Gelsin baba, gelsin koca, gelsin devlet, gelsin cop... İnadına isyan, inadına isyan, inadına özgürlük!"
📹 Video: @tucyil pic.twitter.com/ZmC85W7bbf
(EMK/VK)
Editor of bianet Women’s News (2018). Editor of bianet Women’s and LGBTI+ News from October 2018 to February 2025. She conducts workshops on gender-focused journalism and reporting on gender-based violence. She is among the founders of the Women and LGBTI+ Commission of the Journalists’ Union of Turkey (TGS). She is a board member of the TGS Istanbul Branch for the 2023–2027 term. She received the Musa Anter Journalism Award in 2011 and the Turkish Psychiatric Association’s Best News Award in 2024. She worked as a reporter for Cumhuriyet, BirGün, İMC TV, DİHA, Jinha, and Jin News, and also worked for local newspapers in Rize. Her news reports and articles have been published in Sivil Sayfalar, Yeşil Gazete, Journo, and trade magazines. She is one of the founding writers of GOR, a Hemşin culture magazine. She contributed writings to the books Yeşilden Maviye Karadenizden Kadın Portreleri, Sırtında Sepeti, and Medya ve Yalanlar. She was a bianet intern in 2000. She graduated from the Department of International Relations at Istanbul Bilgi University.
bianet muhabiri (Ağustos 2023-Mayıs 2025). Atölye BİA 5-9 Ekim 2022 "Temel Gazetecilik Atölyesi" katılımcısı. Maltepe Üniversitesi Gazetecilik Bölümü'nü bitirdi. Aynı üniversitede, Siyaset Bilimi ve Uluslararası İlişkiler Bölümü'nde çift anadal yaptı. Halkevleri 12. Halkın Hakları Basın, Sanat ve Dayanışma Ödülleri sahibi.
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