Call for international solidarity with Boğaziçi resistance

* Credit: Osman Baran Özdemir

It has been a year since the students, academics and alumni of Boğaziçi University started protesting the appointed rectors.

On the occasion of the first anniversary of Boğaziçi University protests, the Boğaziçi University International Community (BOYUT) has released a declaration and called for solidarity with the Boğaziçi resistance.

Referring to the two rector appointments over the past year by the Presidential decisions of Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who first appointed Melih Bulu, then Naci İnci as the rector of the university, the BOYUT has recalled that "Boğaziçi University, an esteemed public university in Turkey, has been in peaceful resistance for a year against the attempts of the Erdoğan administration to turn it into an ideological satellite of its authoritarian regime."

Underlining that Bogaziçi University has been "an exemplary institution as a pillar of autonomy and democratic governance since its inception 159 years ago", the BOYUT declaration reads as follows:

'Its democratic tradition being decimated'

Starting with an appointment of an incompetent rector in January 2021 who was politically involved with Erdogan's party, the assaults on Bogazici University accelerated through the insidious power grab within the internal governance and the openly aggressive police force to supress the defiance amid peaceful resistance of students, faculty, workers and alumni in a united act of solidarity.

"Throughout the year, Boğaziçi academics staged a symbolic protest by turning their backs to the rectoral office on the campus grounds with their ceremonial robes every workday at the same hour.

"Students on the other hand, staged continuous demonstrations inside and outside the campus which were met with brutal police force together with the security personnel of the university. Assaults, detentions and arrests violated the freedom of expression and right to protest.

"Academics at the forefront of protests have been sacked and banned from entering the campus for free and were unable to continue their open seminars. Two students are still held under detention with no legitimate ground. Some student clubs including LGBT+ and the commission to prevent harassment have been shut down.

"When the first appointee rector could not succeed in delivering the plan of Erdogan's model of a university, he was replaced by another appointment from within the university against the will of 95 percent of the faculty in August last year. The repressive measures continued with police seizure and violence inside the campus. The new appointee rector acted as an informant to the police with ungrounded accusations against student leaders who ended up being detained without indictment.

"The reason why Boğaziçi University has been a target for the Erdoğan administration lies in the exemplary traditions of the university for democratic governance and academic freedom which created one of the highest-ranking research institutions of the country. For years, supreme power within the university was vested in the faculty and represented by the senate that took decisions by mutual understanding and compromise.

This democratic tradition is now being decimated by the second appointee rector by the government against the will of all components of Boğaziçi University.

'Call for action'

"Boğaziçi University has been unyielding in its resistance and calls for international solidarity in its endeavour for democratic governance and academic freedom in a country under threat of an authoritarian regime. This expression of solidarity can be a statement of support for us to publish, a letter to other institutions, a post in social media with the hashtag:

"#SolidarityWithBogaziciResistance."

What happened?

Prof. Melih Bulu was appointed as the rector of Boğaziçi University by a Presidential Decision published in the Official Gazette on January 2, 2021. The appointment of Bulu sparked harsh criticisms among both the students and academics of the university as well as in the academic community.

Appointed to Boğaziçi, one of the most prestigious universities in Turkey, from outside its community, Bulu was a candidate for nomination to run in the Parliamentary elections in 2015 for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which is chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

The students and several students' clubs of the university campaigned on social media under the hashtag #kayyımrektöristemiyoruz (We don't want a trustee-rector). The call of the students was also supported by the faculty members of the university, who released a joint statement on January 3.

"An academic outside Bogazici University community was appointed as a rector, which is a practice introduced for the first time after the 1980s military tutelage," read the statement of the faculty members.

Amid harsh criticisms of students and faculty members, Prof. Bulu shared a message on his Twitter account, welcoming his appointment to the position, saying, "We are all in the same boat."

The students protested the appointment of Bulu in front of the South Campus of the university in İstanbul on January 4. However, the police intervened into the protest with pepper gas and plastic bullets.

Next day, it was reported that there were detention warrants against 28 people for "violating the law on meetings and demonstrations" and "resisting the officer on duty." Later in the day, 22 of them were detained.

40 people in total were detained over the protests. All of the detained were released on January 7 and 8, 2021.

The protests of students and faculty members at the South Campus of Boğaziçi University have been going on since January 4.

Taken into custody over a picture of the Kaaba, a sacred site in Islam, with a Shahmaran figure and four LGBTI+ flags on its corners, two students were arrested and two were placed under house arrest over this picture displayed at an exhibition as part of the protests at the South Campus.

On February 1, police stormed the South Campus and intervened into the students' protests. Earlier in the day, the students gathered in front of the campus for the protest. Police hindered the protest while also preventing the students inside the South Campus from joining their friends outside.

With the 51 students taken into custody inside the campus in the evening, the number of detained increased to 159. In a statement released by the İstanbul Governor's Office in the early morning hours on February 2, it was announced that 98 students were released from detention.

On February 2, Boğaziçi University students gathered in Kadıköy Rıhtım for another protest, which was attacked by the police with plastic bullets and tear gas. 134 people were taken into custody by the police. Two of the protesters were arrested by the court afterwards.

On February 6, four more people were arrested and two others were placed under house arrest over their participation in Boğaziçi protests in Kadıköy.

On the same day, Erdoğan issued a Presidential decree to open two new faculties at the university. In response to this, the Boğaziçi Solidarity platform addressed an open letter to the "12th President of Turkey."

A day later, student Beyza Buldağ was taken into custody for allegedly administering the "Boğaziçi Solidarity" Twitter account and arrested for "provoking the public to hatred, enmity and hostility" and "provoking to commit crimes" over both the letter and other Twitter posts.

As of February 7, the Boğaziçi Solidarity platform announced that at least 560 students were detained, 25 were sentenced to house arrest and 10 were arrested. Students have been arrested on charges of "degrading or provoking the public to hatred and hostility" and "resisting to prevent fulfilment of duty" as per the Articles 216 and 265 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK).

On February 10, one more student was arrested. With the release of Beyza Buldağ and Muhammed Önal on February 12, there remained nine students arrested over Boğaziçi University protests against the appointed rector.

On February 22, two more students were placed under house arrest on the grounds that they distributed the letter of an arrested student to citizens.

As the protests continued, President Erdoğan on July 15 sacked Melih Bulu. The Council of Higher Education (YÖK) appointed Vice-Rector Naci İnci as the acting rector one day later.

On August 20, 2021, President Erdoğan appointed İnci as the new rector. As of January 5, 2021, two students have been arrested for protesting the appointment of Naci İnci.

(SD)