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Federal Foreign Office on the arrest of Ekrem İmamoğlu
A Federal Foreign Office Spokesperson issued the following statement today (19 March) on the arrest of Ekrem İmamoğlu, the mayor of Istanbul:
Today’s arrest of Ekrem İmamoğlu, the mayor of Istanbul and a high-profile member of the opposition, as well as over 100 other people, represents a heavy blow for democracy in Turkey. Protecting the rights of elected representatives of the people is a crucial part of upholding the rule of law.
Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe and a candidate for accession to the European Union and, as such, the Turkish Government must safeguard the fundamental democratic and rule-of-law principles to which it has committed itself.