Plastic bullets fired at rally
POLICE DISPERSE PROTESTS OVER TURKISH NEWSPAPER SEIZURE
ANKARA: Turkish riot police yesterday fired plastic bullets and tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters who gathered outside an opposition newspaper the day after it was seized by authorities in a violent raid.
“Free press cannot be silenced,” the protesters shouted.
Police used tear gas, water cannon and plastic bullets to disperse the crowd of about 500 protesters outside the Istanbul premises of the Zaman daily, a photographer at the scene reported.
Zaman published a defiant edition yesterday warning of the “darkest days” in the history of the press after authorities seized control of its headquarters in a dramatic late-night raid by riot police.
The swoop against the paper, staunchly opposed to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, caused immediate concern in Washington and Brussels over declining media freedoms in Turkey.
Police fired tear gas and water cannon just before midnight on Friday at a hundreds-strong crowd that had formed outside the Zaman offices in Istanbul following a court order issued earlier in the day.
Zaman, closely linked to Mr Erdogan’s arch-foe, the US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen, was ordered into administration by the court on the request of Istanbul prosecutors, the state-run Anatolia news agency said.
“The Constitution is suspended,” the newspaper, which managed to print its latest issue after the violent takeover, said on its front page in large font on a black background. “The Turkish press has experienced one of the darkest days in its history.”
Shortly before midnight, a team of police with two water cannon trucks advanced military style towards the waiting supporters, firing the freezing water at them.
Using bolt-cutters to unlock the iron gate in front of the building, dozens of police marched into the premises to seize the headquarters and formally place it under administration.
EU enlargement commissioner Johannes Hahn said he was “extremely worried” about the move and warned on Twitter that Turkey needs to “respect the freedom of the media”.
Zaman’s employees began their job yesterday morning under tight police scrutiny.