The Mayor of the Imprisoned Opposition of Istanbul appeared in court on Friday in one of the multiple cases against him. Hundreds of followers gathered outside of Silivri’s prison, west of Istanbul, where his eyes were made.
Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu has been detained in Silivri since March 23. The case claims that he threatened a public prosecutor and is one of six who precede his arrest last month, which caused protests nationally.
Directing to the judge, Imamoglu said he was in court because he had won three elections against the person « who owns Istanbul », a reference to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who launched his political career as mayor of the city in the 1990’s.
The woman and the son of Imamoglu, as well as the legislators of the Republican Popular Party (CHP), were attended by Halk TV and other points of sale. The case was postponed on June 16.
The mayor, who is also the main challenging opposition of Erdogan’s 22-year-old rule in the next national election, faces more than seven years in prison and a political ban on allegedly « orienting himself, threatening and insulting people working in the fight against terrorism. »
The post derives from the comments he made on January 20, which criticized the public prosecutor in Chief of Istanbul, Akin Gurlek, on criminal cases against other opposition figures.
Politically motivated charges, according to opposition
Imamoglu was arrested on March 19 in relation to two research: one focused on corruption in the municipality of Istanbul and another alleging terrorism links on his party’s electoral pact with Pro-Kurds politicians.
The demonstrations that called for their release and the end of the Turkey’s democratic implementation under Erdogan led to about 2,000 people detained to attend the protests banned by the authorities.
Istanbul’s popular mayor’s supporters, Ekrem Imamoglu, faced riot police after their arrest for corruption allegations and helping a terrorist group. A political rival of the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Imamoglu, was expected to be in the next national election.
The mayor was officially nominated as a candidate for the CHP presidency while in remand. The election will take place in 2028, but it may sooner, and the imprisonment of Imamoglu has been widely considered politically motivated, although the government insists that the Turkey judiciary is independent and free of political influence.
Two other courts in Istanbul also held auditions on cases against Imamoglu on Friday.
One is a case of offer dating to ten years, when he was mayor of the Beylikduzu district of Istanbul. The other claims the illegal collection of donations and comes from a video circulating in last year’s local elections showing that CHP staff has cash packages.
In 2019, Imamoglu was forced to repeat the election for the mayor after the governing party challenged the first vote on the alleged irregularities, and the Electoral Board of Turkey annulled the results and revoked Imamoglu’s mandate after 18 days. Many voters were outraged and won a second vote.
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