Turkish PM rails at 'plot' behind Istanbul protest

SINCAN, Turkey (AP) ? Turkey's prime minister lashed out Saturday at what he called the "plot" behind the biggest street protests in his 10-year tenure, in a boisterous speech to tens of thousands of flag-waving party faithful.

Supporters of Recep Tayyip Erdogan converged in Sincan, a suburb of the capital Ankara that is a stronghold of his Justice and Development Party. The rally came just hours after protesters in Istanbul's Gezi Park defied Erdogan's warning that they must leave, vowing to press on with a two-week sit-in that has galvanized demonstrations around the country.

"Over the last 17 days, I know that in all corners of Turkey, millions and billions have prayed for us," Erdogan said, as he moved about the stage. "You saw the plot that was being carried out, the trap being set." He said they represented the "silent masses."

"You are here, and you are spoiling the treacherous plot, the treacherous attack!" he said, insisting unspecified groups both inside and outside Turkey had conspired to mount the protests centered on Istanbul ? and that he had the documents to prove it.

The crowd chanted in response: "Stand straight, don't bow, the people are with you!"

A violent police crackdown on what began as an environmental protest over a redevelopment plan at Gezi Park has sparked a much broader expression of discontent about Erdogan's government, and what many say is his increasingly authoritarian manner of governing.

Erdogan, who was elected with 50 percent of the vote for his third term in 2011, vehemently rejects the accusations. But the protests put some of the greatest political pressure on him in his 10-year tenure.

Erdogan has previously said that Saturday's rally of supporters and another planned Sunday in Istanbul were not designed as "an alternative" to the demonstrations at Gezi Park, but part of early campaigning for local elections next March.

In his speech, he focused on some protesters who have clashed with polices ? at time by throwing stones and firebombs.

"There is no breaking and burning here, we are people of love," Erdogan said. "If people want to see the real Turkey, they should come here to Sincan."

Erdogan already has offered to defer to a court ruling on the legality of the government's contested park redevelopment plan, and floated the possibility of a referendum on it. But concessions over the park seem to no longer be enough.

Earlier this week, Erdogan ordered the adjacent Taksim Square to be cleared of protesters. Police moved past improvised barricades on Tuesday, firing tear gas and rubber bullets and using water cannons to fend off small groups of demonstrators throwing stones, bottles and firebombs. Tear gas was also fired through the trees into the park, although the protesters were not removed.

Taksim Square itself returned to normal right after the end of the police operation early Wednesday. Traffic returned, the protest banners and flags were taken down, and cafes set up their chairs and tables outside again. At night, demonstrators still spill out from the park down the steps, while riot police keep watch from the edges.

Tayfun Kahraman, a Taksim Solidarity member who met with Erdogan in last-ditch talks that lasted until the pre-dawn hours Friday, said the protesters had agreed to continue their sit-in at Gezi Park after holding a series of discussions about their response to the pledges made by Erdogan.

"We shall remain in the park until all of our democratic rights are recognized," he told The Associated Press, insisting that four key demands laid out by protesters in the talks had not been met.

The group has demanded that apart from the park being left intact, anyone responsible for excessive police force must resign or be fired, all activists detained in the protests should be released, and the police use of tear gas and other non-lethal weapons be banned.

"As of today, with the dynamism and strength that comes from the struggle that has spread to the whole country, and even the world, we shall continue the resistance against all kinds of injustice and victimization in our country," Taksim Solidarity said in a statement posted on its website and later read out in the park. The group didn't say explicitly that it would remain in the park.

As the statement was read out, many among the gathered crowd clapped and began shouting, "This is just the beginning ? the struggle continues!"

Although the most prominent group to emerge from the protests, Taksim Solidarity doesn't speak for everyone occupying Gezi. With many protesters saying they have no affiliation to any group or political party, many could make individual decisions on whether to stay or leave.

But there were few signs of anyone intending to pack up Saturday afternoon, and the daily activity in what has become a tent city continued with little indication of change. Deliveries of bottles of water and food arrived, people lined up for servings of lunch, while others cleared garbage and swept the paths clean after the morning rain.

According to the government's redevelopment plan for Taksim Square, the park would be replaced with a replica Ottoman-era barracks. Under initial plans, the construction would have housed a shopping mall, though that has since been amended to the possibility of an opera house, a theater and a museum with cafes.

Protesters angered by the project began occupying the park last month, but the police crackdown on May 31 saw the demonstrations spread to dozens of cities across the country. In recent days they have concentrated on Istanbul and the capital, Ankara.

The anger has been fanned because riot police have at times used tear gas, water cannons and rubber bullets to disperse mostly peaceful protesters. Five people, including a police officer, have died and thousands of people have been injured, denting Erdogan's international reputation.

Earlier Saturday, President Abdullah Gul wrote on Twitter that "everyone should now return home," insisting that "the channels for discussion and dialogue" have opened ? an apparent reference to the talks between Erdogan and a small group of delegates from the protest.

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Keaten reported from Ankara. Elena Becatoros in Istanbul and Suzan Fraser in Ankara contributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/turkish-pm-rails-plot-behind-istanbul-protest-154436054.html

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