DW: Ekrem Imamoglu's imprisonment an attack on democracy

German and European politicians sharply criticized the arrest of the mayor of Istanbul and called for increased pressure on Erdogan.

“The arrest of the mayor is deeply concerning,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels. “Turkey must uphold democratic values, especially the rights of elected officials.”

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and his supporters a “blow to democracy in Turkey.” “We are clearly seeing that the space for opposition politicians is becoming smaller and smaller,” she said.

Pressure on Erdogan must increase

The foreign policy spokesman for the Union parliamentary group in the German parliament, the Bundestag, Jürgen Hardt (CDU), also criticized the imprisonment of Turkish opposition politician Ekrem Imamoglu. “The timing and political context of the arrest” suggest that a political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is being “deprived of his democratic rights,” Hardt told the Welt newspaper. “Germany must make it clear that Erdogan has taken another step towards autocracy and that this cannot be accepted.”

Green Party foreign policy expert Max Lucks urged Germany to “put Erdogan under significant pressure now.” It is important to show “that human rights and democracy in Turkey are not a small issue for us,” he told the Handelsblatt newspaper. Lucks called for an immediate ban on arms shipments to Turkey.

He also called for the infringement procedure against Turkey, which is underway at the Council of Europe, “to be accelerated with all possible consequences and closely linked to the EU’s political and economic relations with Turkey,” Lucks said. The proceedings were launched in December 2021 following the imprisonment of civil rights activist Osman Kavala, who supported the Gezi protests.

France: Imamoglu's imprisonment "attack on democracy"

The arrest and imprisonment of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and other political leaders "constitute a serious attack on democracy," the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The statement said that Turkey, which has been led by Recep Tayyip Erdogan for more than 20 years, has promised to protect the rights of opposition figures.

Freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly are the cornerstones of the rule of law, the statement said, underlining that Turkey – as a member of the Council of Europe and a candidate for membership in the European Union – has “made commitments in this area”.

"Respecting these commitments is a central element of our relations, as well as of relations between Turkey and the European Union," the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Escalation of attacks on the opposition in Turkey

Amnesty International said Imamoglu's arrest marked an escalation in the crackdown on the opposition in Turkey. "While the use of vague terrorism charges as a weapon against the opposition to imprison and prosecute opponents is not new, the recent detentions and accompanying restrictions represent an alarming intensification of the targeting of real or perceived critics," said Dinushka Disanayake, Amnesty's deputy director for Europe./ DW