The journalist arrests fears for democracy

It was early on the morning of March 23, when the police came to Yasin Akgula’s door in Istanbul – while his children were still in bed. A few hours earlier, a Turkish photojournalist returned home, covering mass anti -government protests. Now he was wanted.

“I went to the door and saw that there was a lot of police,” he says. “They said that there was an arrest order for me but did not give me the details. My son woke up, and I couldn’t even tell him what was happening because I didn’t understand it myself.”

The 35-year-old Akgulat saw “a lot of actions” for more than a decade as a photojournalist from the AFP news agency-destroyed Syria to Iraq, which is controlled by Islands. He was beaten by police several times on his native land during photographing, including World Peace Day – and he was detained “so many times”.

But the arrested at home was the first.

“The cold fell over the house,” he tells us. “In my work, on the protests, I saw a lot of violence and tears, but having the police in my house, I felt more afraid.”

Akgulat was one of seven journalists arrested in dawn raids. All covered the protests caused by the mayor of the city’s opposition’s Imomoglu’s Snipper Competition for many years of Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The participants of the rally point out that the mayor’s arrest for the accusations of corruption, which he denies, is politically motivated – an attempt to stop his hope to become the next president of the country.

Authorities banned the protests, but could not stop them.

Akgulat is facing allegations that “takes part in illegal actions and marches”. He says the goal is clear – to stop others who take the biggest excitement in Turkey for more than a decade.

He was in the thickets – against the anti -anti – when he made some of the most iconic images of the night.

His photos show that a man dressed as a whirlwind (a dance mystic), which is forwarded by pepper, is sprayed with a line of riot police-bright images of the battle for the soul of Turkey, which has been around the world before landing behind bars.

“This message is for all journalists,” he says. “Do not shoot (take pictures), do not talk, do not shoot. They make other journalists fear that if they return to the field, they may face the same.” What he works at the AFP International Information Agency makes this message even more loud, he said.

It was accepted and understood.

“After being arrested, many freelance journalists could not shoot the next day. Everyone was afraid,” he told us, sitting on the couch at home with his wife Hazal nearby.

Their three -year -old daughter, Ipek, lay on the couch holding his father’s hand. Their son is smart, eight, listened, putting on Harry Potter’s hat and glasses.

Akgulat believes that the arrested were carefully selected – among them experienced photojournalists. “They try to remove us from the forefront,” he says.

Many of his friends – colleagues -journalists – have already deleted themselves, leaving Turkey because they have encountered the allegations or feared.

So far, his family is experiencing that the courts can break them. The government says the judicial system does not depend. Human rights groups say the judges are under political control, and Turkish democracy is blurred from year to year.

President Erdogan – who has a lot of loyal supporters – retains a dense contribution to the leverage. He says protests are “street terrorism” and accuses counteracting the leading “violence movement”. He predicted that the demonstrations would fade.

May. Maybe not.

As Yasin Akgulia was released from prison on the morning of March 27, Mark Lowen BBC was deported from Istanbul after 17 hours in custody. He was given documents that say he was “threatening public order”.

The authorities later said – after the BBC reported the story – he was deported because he lacked accreditation.

It is not just a risk journalists. One of the mayor’s own lawyers was detained briefly “fictional features”, according to a social media report, which Ekrem Imamoglu sent a high security prison from his camera.

His legal team fights further, but they also feel idle.

“I think the right to defense is sacred. It is part of the fair trial that your lawyers should feel comfortable and safe,” says Ek Guner, who is both a lawyer and mayor advisor.

“It would be a lie to say that, frankly, no one is worried,” she says to us, “we still believe that we are obliged to say the truth, preserve democracy and the rule of law.”

Where is the Turkish democracy now? Some here are afraid that it is on the last sigh.

Over the past two weeks or so – since the protests began on March 19 – about 2000 people have been detained, the Turkish Interior Ministry reports.

Many of them are students and members of the Erdogan generation who knows only the 22-year rule of the long-standing leader of Turkey. Arrested them send another message.

“This is a huge warning for young people, a loud and clear warning,” says Emma Sincler-Webb, director of Human Rights Watch.

She says the government also “knocked out in all directions against the perceived opposition” from any quarter, not just the People’s Party of the mayor (CHP), which is the main opposition party.

“Public authorities are at risk,” she says. “When they express and use their votes with the authorities, there is an attempt to strangle them immediately.”

She expects that in the coming months attempts will be constantly restricted and “make them invisible”.

It will not be difficult, given the broad control of the government here. Huge demonstrations have not yet led the ballots on state television and pro -government outlets, and when they were shown, the participants of the rally called terrorists.

Last action – last weekend – At least attracted several hundred people. The opposition claims that more than two million people were present.

Some families brought a few generations with them to hear calls for change under the warm sun. We saw the usual heavy presence of the police, but this time there was no tear gas or rubber bullets. This rally was not banned.

Among the crowd we met the 32nd Alpa, who said he had been defending democracy while there was still time. We did not ask the last name – many participants of the action prefer not to give their own. He said he was concerned about the risk of arrest.

“Police are collecting students as well as women as well as we are as we are,” he said.

“So, we are all in danger now. But we have to get up. This is our only choice. If we do nothing, if we just look, the battle is already lost.”

The opposition promises to maintain its protests and the campaign on the streets. This is relevant for the presidential election to be presented since 2028.

Opposition polls believe that President Erdogan loses Imomoglu – when he was released from prison and will be able to act as a candidate.

The President himself should not be able to run – because he is already in the second term – but there is a suggestion that he can try to change the constitution.

The opposition insists that there will be weekly protests. If so, it seems confident that the arrests will continue.

It is unclear whether Yasin Akgula will go, but the accusations will remain. Despite the danger, he hopes to continue to tell the story here.

“Someone has to do this work,” he says, “and I think I’m one of these people.”