What in the World
What in the World
Who is protesting in Turkey and why?
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March 26, 2025
11 minutes
Available for over a year
Thousands of people in Turkey turned out for a seventh night of protests which have so far seen more than 1,400 people detained, including students, journalists and lawyers. Demonstrations began in Istanbul on 19 March, when the city's Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu - who is seen as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main political rival - was arrested on corruption charges.
In this episode we bring you the background to the protests. Nihan Kalle, a reporter for BBC Monitoring in Istanbul, tells us why President Erdogan is still popular after 22 years in power and why Ekrem Imamoglu is seen as a threat to him. BBC Turkish reporter Özge Özdemir explains the state of democracy in Turkey right now. And we hear directly from some of the student protestors - what changes do they want to see in Turkey?
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Presenter: Hannah Gelbart
Producers: Mora Morrison, Julia Ross-Roy and Maria Clara Montoya
Editor: Verity Wilde