Attacking to stay afloat

The government, whose public support has eroded, is increasing its pressure on the opposition every day in order to extend the life of the regime. Everyone who speaks out, objects, thinks differently, defends the independence of the law, the people's right to receive information, and supports democracy, secularism and human rights is being tried to be brought into line with the government's judicial stick. While journalists are being brought to justice, mayors, bureaucrats and members of parliament are being punished. Television channels are being blacked out, and demonstrations are being banned. The regime, which understands that it will lose if it stops and steps back, thinks that it can only survive through oppression.

The CHP 's presidential candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu, who was elected with over 15 million votes, its leader Özgür Özel , mayors and deputies are being targeted, having been turned into the main enemy. The government is intimidating all social opposition with operations to silence them. Many developments in the last 24 hours are enough to reveal how the regime has surrounded the country.

• INVESTIGATION OF 61 CHP MPS

It was learned that the presidential motion regarding the lifting of 240 parliamentary immunity of 61 of the 135 CHP deputies is in the Turkish Grand National Assembly. The text signed by Antalya Deputy Serap Yazıcı Özbudun, who was elected as a deputy from the Future Party with the support of the CHP during the Six-Party Table process in the May 14, 2023 elections but later switched to the AKP, as the President of the Constitutional Commission, was presented to the CHP Group Presidency. The text includes the following statements: “In your letter of interest, it is requested that the list containing the names, file numbers, prosecution authority and criminal charges of the deputies who are members of your political party group, which was submitted to the Presidency of the Joint Committee during the 28th Legislative Term, be provided to your group. In this context, as a result of the examination of the files in question, it has been determined that there are 240 presidential motions regarding the removal of the legislative immunity of 61 deputies who are members of your group as of 03.07.2025, and information regarding the files in question is provided in the attached list.”

• INVESTIGATION AGAINST ÖZGÜR ÖZEL

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has launched an investigation into CHP Chairman Özgür Özel. The reason for the investigation was Özel's comments against AKP President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at yesterday's press conference. Erdoğan filed a 500,000 TL lawsuit against CHP leader Özel for moral damages due to his statements following the MYK meeting. Özgür Özel had said, "I know the day I will invite you to the streets. Think for yourself what state you will be in that day. But don't make me invite this nation to the streets. Come to your senses." Addressing the President, Özel said, "We will not let you sit there with 29 percent, Erdoğan. I will not let you sit there with 29 percent," and continued his words as follows: "This nation will fight for the ballot boxes to be set up, just as they fought for the ballot boxes to be placed. After that, you will watch the democratic squares on TV just like you watched the squares in Egypt. "We are not threatening anyone with a coup, but if someone attempts a coup and tries to take the ballot box, this nation will bring the ballot box back with their own hands."

• MAYORS IN CUSTODY

In a new operation conducted on municipalities on Saturday morning, the mayors of Adana, Adıyaman and Antalya were detained. Adana Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Zeydan Karalar and Adıyaman Mayor Abdurrahman Tutdere are still in custody. Antalya Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Böcek was arrested on Saturday evening. Among those detained is Ahmet Şahin, the deputy mayor elected to replace Büyükçekmece Mayor Hasan Akgün. Karalar and Tutdere, whose statements are ongoing at the police station, are expected to be referred to court today. On the other hand, according to the statement of Adana Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Zeydan Karalar, for whom a detention order was issued in the investigation into the 'Aziz İhsan Aktaş' criminal organization, it was stated that the 2 people who were heard as witnesses were employees of Aziz İhsan Aktaş. The person who claimed that Karalar bribed an employee of Seyhan Municipality, which he was the mayor of 11 years ago, was revealed to be the former manager of a company close to the government. According to the news by Dinçer Gökçe from Halktv.com.tr, the police statement of Adıyaman Mayor Abdurrahman Tutdere and Adana Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Karalar, who was detained on the same day, consists of 56 pages. According to the statement, there is only one accusation against Karalar. The basis of the said accusation is related to the period when Karalar was the Seyhan Municipality Mayor between 2014-2019. Karalar said in his statement, "Neither during this meeting nor afterwards did I have any conversations with this person or any contractor regarding the payment of the earnings and providing benefits to myself or any institution. Such a conversation can never be possible for me due to my personality. I reject the claim that I have requested benefits for the payment of the earnings. Such a conversation has never taken place. I believe that this person made such an untrue slander in order to escape his arrest."

• BLACKOUT ON SÖZCÜ TV:

The Ankara 7th Administrative Court has lifted the stay of execution decision on the 10-day screen blackout penalty given to SÖZCÜ TV. SÖZCÜ TV screens will go dark starting at midnight tonight. A decision has also been made regarding Halk TV’s application to the court for a stay of execution regarding the 10-day screen blackout penalty given by RTÜK. The Ankara 21st Administrative Court has ruled to stay the screen blackout decision and requested the records of the broadcast on which RTÜK based the penalty, as well as the opinions and minutes of the board. RTÜK has given Halk TV a 10-day broadcast suspension by majority vote on the grounds that the statements made by Atomic Engineer Tolga Yarman on the program “Without Sansürsüz with Sinem Fıstıkoğlu”, “Turkey is not becoming religious, it is becoming sectarian” and “If we look at it from the moment the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge was named, we were instigated against Iran” constituted “inciting the public to hatred and hostility”. According to the news on Halktv.com.tr, Halk TV applied to the court to cancel the penalty in question. The decision was made on the channel's stay of execution application. Ankara 21st Administrative Court found the objection of Halk TV lawyers to be valid.

• BARIM'S DETENTION CONTINUES

The trial of Ayşe Barım, the manager of the Gezi Park protests who was arrested on January 27 for allegedly directing the Gezi Park protests, has been postponed to October 1, 2025. The court ruled that Ayşe Barım’s detention continue. The court ruled that 12 people be forcibly brought in. decided to be forcibly brought in. The trial of actor manager Ayşe Barım, who is being tried on charge of “aiding the attempt to overthrow the Government of the Republic of Turkey” for allegedly directing the Gezi Park protests, has been postponed to October 1, 2025. The court ruled that actors Halit Ergenç, Bergüzar Korel, Mehmet Günsur, Dolunay Soysert, Nejat İşler, Nehir Erdoğan, Hümeyra Adak, Rıza Kocaoğlu, Selma Ergeç, Şükran Ovalı, Zafer Algöz and journalist Enver Aysever be forcibly brought in as witnesses. who were present at the courthouse to follow the hearing. Halit Ergenç, Bergüzar Korel and Selma Ergeç were not allowed into the courtroom because they were witnesses. Barım was detained on the grounds that he was one of the planners of the protests and was arrested on January 27. The indictment prepared by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and accepted by the Istanbul 26th High Criminal Court demands a prison sentence of 22 years and 6 months to 30 years for Barım.

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LEAVE MY CANDIDATE, BRING THE BALLOT BOX HERE IMMEDIATELY

CHP Chairman Özgür Özel made the following assessment regarding the investigation launched against him: "I would like to express that I find the investigation positive in terms of our judicial system. I appreciate the step taken by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, albeit hastily, to protect its own area of ​​authority and responsibility."

CHP Chairman Özgür Özel followed the Kartalkaya fire disaster case in Bolu. Responding to a question about the investigation being launched against him due to his speech following the CHP Central Executive Committee meeting, Özel said the following: "I would like to state that I find the investigation positive in terms of our judicial system. The investigation was launched yesterday evening by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. I appreciate the hasty step taken by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office to protect its own area of ​​authority and responsibility, against a possible excess of authority by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, which considers itself the Chief Public Prosecutor of Turkey and which undoubtedly crushes the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor today and enters his area of ​​authority.

If an investigation was to be launched, the venue for that investigation was the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. In that respect, it is a good thing. If they launch an investigation into me and prepare an indictment , that is a separate issue. I congratulate the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor for not recognizing the authorities of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor, first the Antalya Chief Public Prosecutor in the Ümit Özdağ incident, then the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor, and again the Kayseri Chief Public Prosecutor, and for teaching them their professions and practically mopping them up and saying to himself, 'I am privileged. I was assigned by the gentleman. I do not recognize borders, I do not recognize boundaries. I look after this side of Istanbul, and that side. I also look after Anatolia. I look after everywhere.' He did the right thing." Özel, evaluating AKP member Bekir Bozdağ's statements regarding the early elections, noted the following: "There is a scream that Bekir Bey does not hear. This is the ballot box demand of the nation that cannot make ends meet, the nation that is unemployed, the nation that is rebelling against injustice. The ballot box will come not when Bekir Bey wants it or when his gentleman wants it, but when the nation wants it. The nation says, 'Leave my candidate, bring my ballot box. I will make the decision.' They are proceeding with great unlawfulness. We do not want to politicize the content of the case we are following today. But we need to see what the people Mr. Erdoğan knows very well have seen and experienced here, what they are rebelling against. All the columns and beams that support the state in Türkiye are cracked. The nation needs to take action to fix this. The nation is taking action to do this. We said, 'Come on November 2nd, if you trust yourselves.' Erdoğan says, 'I also had a poll conducted.' 'Leave all the polls aside, I have a poll. We are the number one party.' How great is that? Let's put the ballot box in early November and have this election. Not being afraid of the election is a job for now. This is a daily job. It is not a two-year term job. Bekir Bozdağ is not afraid of the election but he is not afraid of the two-year term. He is afraid of November. He is afraid of next April. He says, 'Let two years pass, let 2027 come. Then we will not be afraid of the election, God willing.' When that day comes, they will be afraid, they will not be able to escape. But the people cannot bear to wait for that day. That is why I cannot make such a concession. Please excuse me."

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SOLIDARITY THANKS FROM SOYKAN

Our newspaper writer Timur Soykan, who was detained on the grounds of his social media posts and then released "on condition of judicial control", thanked everyone who showed solidarity with him. Soykan, who stated in his defense, "Those who massacred justice will be tried before independent courts and we will continue our struggle as journalists to make our country more just, free and fair", stated that he had not committed any crime within the scope of freedom of press and expression. Soykan, who thanked all those who supported him after his release following what had happened, said the following: "I wish I could thank everyone one by one, but it is not possible. Many thanks to everyone who showed solidarity and supported him with their beautiful words during the detention process."