Student Protest in Turkey

1,000 students have clashed with the police at the METU University in Ankara, Turkey. The students were protesting the visit of the Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan – who has been pushing an agenda of privatisation across higher education in Turkey for the last couple of years.

A witness to the brutality reports that:
“Police were casting tear gas bombs at students every 30 seconds. They were even attacking harshly as students were retreating. Police might be seeking revenge from previous student protests”

Solidarity protests have taken place across Turkey. In Adana students were subjected to attacks with rubber bullets and gas, leaving dozens injured. In Mershin students protested on the steps of the University management offices. In Eskieshir police set up barricades and fired gas canisters at hundreds of students, and were attacked by private security guards. Similar protests occurred at campuses in Izmir, Trabzon, and Kocaeli."