Opposition und Bürgerbewegung in der Türkei?
Opposition and Civil Movement in Turkey?

Summary/Abstract: The Turkish civil movement became known internationally primarily through the Gezi Park demonstrations in 2013. They revealed more serious deficits of Turkish democracy than previously thought. The protest movement is a good starting point to understand how the Turkish opposition thinks and feels and why a movement in this form does not exist any longer. It also emphasizes why it has become increasingly quiet on the Turkish streets, why the public protest is not visible anymore. The extremely strong police force and the “witch-hunt” against critics accounts for this development. The desire for security which many Turks experienced due to the country’s economic strength under the AKP government is one of the main reasons for the AKP’s electoral success. Moreover, the shameful refugee policies implemented by many EU countries and the humanitarian blessing of the Turkish government when it comes to the approximately two million Syrian refugees in Turkey determined the AKP-success. Most recently, the Kurds have been highlighted as a very important democratic factor. Especially the electoral success of the Kurdish party HDP in the parliamentary elections of June 2015 has given hope to the people for more democracy in the country.

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