Taksim Square Closed to Workers

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The police have encircled the area around the vicinity of Taksim Square upon an order by the Governor of İstanbul who banned the May Day celebrations on the square.

From Taksim Square to the Tünel area, police barricades have been placed at all entrances to the İstiklal Avenue. Along with cars, pedestrians are also not allowed to pass the barricades.

As for the people who work in that area, those who previously didn't register their names at the police are also not allowed to use the blocked roads.

As of 9.40 a.m., only the members of the Hak-İş Trade Union Confederation entered the square.

The Confederation's İstanbul Provincial Chairperson, Mustafa Şişman, made a statement here, demanding the workers' union rights be recognized.

"We oppose the firings of the union workers. We never want [the workers] to be pressurized because of changing unions.

Hak-İş members on the square:

"We request the workplace accidents to end, workplace health and workplace safety to be increased, healthy working environments to be established.

"We request the seniority indemnity, which is our right, not to be removed but to be increased.

"We want the minimum wage to be on a level that is appropriate for human dignity and sufficient to live, the tax injustice to be removed."

The march of the Türk-İş members:

A group of workers from the Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (Türk-İş) left cloves on the Kazancı Yokuşu in the memory of the 41 killed people on May 1, 1977.

The group then marched to the Republic Monument on Taksim Square, then returned while chanting, "We are at where Türk-İş is." (PT/EKN/VK)

*Headline photo: AA, other photos: Pınar Tarcan