Antalya. One of the largest protests by civil society organizations in Turkey in months took place at the halfway point of the climate conference in Antalya. According to the organizers for climate protection and human rights, more than 10,000 people took to the streets peacefully. “There hasn't been a protest with such participation in Turkey for a long time,” said Nil Ormanli from the event committee of the German Press Agency (dpa). The Turkish authorities generally do not provide information on the number of participants.
In addition to international organizations, numerous Turkish associations, trade unions and opposition parties were also represented, who used the rare opportunity to draw attention to the situation in the country. In Turkey, gatherings that are particularly critical of the government are repeatedly banned. It was only at the NATO summit in Ankara in July that the authorities imposed a comprehensive ban on demonstrations and arrested dozens of people.
At the beginning of the World Climate Conference, when journalists asked about arrests in the past, the Turkish Environment Minister and summit president Murat Kurum emphasized that peaceful demonstrations were allowed. In this respect, Turkey is one of the fairest countries in the world. “That’s why there are no arrests during a peaceful demonstration in Turkey,” he said.
The demonstrators gathered at the entrance to Aydin Kanza Park and walked to Republic Square, about a kilometer away. Police officers checked bags, posters and banners at the entrance to the cordoned off section of the site.
15-year-old Deniz said he hid his rainbow flag because he knew from experience that the police would take it from him anyway. He also had a Palestine flag with him. “We are here to stand with the oppressed, whether it is with queer people in Turkey or the Palestinians,” he said. Despite the concerns, several rainbow flags were visible at the demonstration.
In Turkey, there is currently a particular focus on homosexual and other queer people; in September there were nationwide raids on LGBTQ associations, among others.
Green Bundestag member Claudia Roth confidently showed off her socks in rainbow colors before the protest began. The former Minister of State for Culture called on the Turkish security forces to show restraint. There should be no attacks or arrests. “I can only warn against this,” said the Green politician to the dpa. Protests from civil society are always part of a climate conference.
Climate activist Luisa Neubauer from Fridays vor Future said that we stand in solidarity with Turkish civil society, which is fighting passionately but at the same time experiencing incredibly strong repression. The aim of the demonstration is to show that we will not stand by silently when Turkey, as host, wants to clear its human rights record.
Signs and banners with very controversial messages were avoided so as not to endanger anyone. “It works very well, such a repressive machine,” she said, referring to the extensive police checks and security instructions. Neubauer warned of the danger that after the conference, once international activists and journalists had left, local demonstrators could potentially face consequences. Therefore, people take part with “mixed feelings”.
Nevertheless, many demonstrators did not allow themselves to be intimidated and made their concerns heard: Turkish groups shouted well-known slogans of the Turkish opposition such as: “Shoulder to shoulder against fascism” or, with a view to the ruling party: “The day will come when the AKP will have to be accountable to the people.”
61-year-old Halil Dönmez criticized Turkey as the host country of the climate conference. He has been fighting for years against the expansion of coal in Turkey and the resulting environmental destruction. It is “tragically strange” that such a government is hosting the summit.
Colette Markus from Denmark and her group of artists took part in the demonstration wearing a polar bear costume. She wanted to draw attention to the consequences of global warming, she told the dpa. "Climate change is a big problem. It's too hot for the polar bears," she said.
The polar bears pushed a large, overturned Statue of Liberty with the inscription “Freedom to Pollute” and a small Trump figure through Antalya. The USA withdrew from the Paris Climate Agreement under US President Donald Trump. Participants from the Global South called for a fairer distribution of financing for damage caused by the climate crisis.
Parallel to the World Climate Summit, the “Summit of the Peoples” begins in the center of Antalya with hundreds of civil society organizations from Turkey and abroad. The next few days will focus on the topics of environmental destruction, the exit from fossil fuels and democracy, among other things.
