Student groups and the main opposition parties in Türkiye called for a nationwide “no shopping day” on Wednesday, April 2 to boycott all the companies considered to be backers of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The “no shopping day” campaign is part of the nationwide protests against the government triggered by the arrest of former mayor of Istanbul Ekrem İmamoğlu on March 19. It was also called to highlight the continued detention of over 300 people, mostly students, for taking part in the anti-government protests in the last two weeks.
Supporting the call for no shopping day, Özgür Özel, leader of the main opposition Republican Peoples’ Party (CHP), called all sections of Turkish society to participate in the boycott of big corporate backers of the government’s oppressive policies calling it a response to the “injustice”.
According to reports, various small businesses extended their support to the boycott call and shut down their stores in solidarity.
İmamoğlu’s arrest
Protests in Türkiye broke out following the arrest of Istanbul mayor İmamoğlu on March 19 on charges of corruption and terrorism. He was also accused of supporting the banned Kurdish Workers Party (PKK). The court, however, during the preliminary hearings rejected the charges related to terrorism and ordered his arrest on corruption charges pending inquiry.
Following the initial hearing İmamoğlu, also a leader of the CHP, was also removed from his mayor’s post on March 23.
Imamoglu, his party and other opposition parties have claimed that the arrest and the charges against İmamoğlu are politically motivated. They claim that the move was an attempt to prevent İmamoğlu from running in the country’s future presidential elections.
A day before his arrest, İmamoğlu’s diploma was annulled by the university administration. Having a university degree is compulsory to contest the post of president in Türkiye.
In a statement issued on March 23 Turkish Communist Party (TKP) called İmamoğlu’s arrest “illegal” and termed it as “AKP government’s latest operation to undermine the right of universal suffrage” in the country.
State repression of the protests
The demonstrations which followed İmamoğlu’s arrests are considered the largest in the country in more than a decade. According to Al-Jazeera, they have spread across 55 of Türkiye’s 81 provinces.
Accusing the protesters of spreading “terror on streets” Erdogan says they are attempting to set the country on fire. The government has denied that İmamoğlu’s arrest has anything to do with politics, asserting the country’s judiciary is independent.
In some places, police have attacked the protesters with teargas and water cannons, leaving many people injured. They have arrested over 2,000 protesters including several leaders and activists of opposition parties.
The AKP government has also cracked down on the media covering the popular protests by arresting seven journalists. The journalists were released later following intervention by the courts.
Several leaders and members of the TKP were also arrested by the Turkish police during the protests on March 29.
The roots of public unrest are deeper
Following his arrest, CHP decided to officially make İmamoğlu its presidential candidate for the next elections scheduled to be held in 2028. There are speculations that the elections may happen earlier than expected.
According to reports, Imamgolu’s popularity has been surging, threatening the long-term domination of Erdogan and his AKP in the country’s politics. Erdogan came to power first as prime minister in 2003 and has been president since 2014.
Analysts have pointed out that the ongoing protests in Türkiye have taken on a bigger meaning and express the long-standing discontent under the AKP government.
Yerin hazır!👉🏼 https://t.co/Hfy2VJIKgn
Umutsuz ve karamsar değiliz, seçeneksiz de.
Beklediğimiz güzel günler ellerimizdedir. Halkın örgütlü gücü bu ülkeyi muhakkak değiştirecektir. pic.twitter.com/yWXlHOnV05
— TKP (@tkpninsesi) March 29, 2025
Murat Akad, member of the party council of the TKP, while speaking to BreakThrough News last week, said that although the protests may have been triggered by the arrest of İmamoğlu, the real reason for the popular anger is much deeper. “There is a huge economic problem for the people in Türkiye,” he said, stating that there is rising poverty and unemployment in the country apart from a prolonged inflation, making it difficult for most people to live a decent life.
Akad also highlighted that under Erdogan’s government, people’s rights and freedoms are constantly under attack. Various opposition leaders, journalists and human rights activists have been arrested under AKP rule.
Akad claimed that the protests may reflect the growing anger among the Turkish population over these long-term failures of the government.
