Protests over teenager’s death belie a deeper crisis in Turkey

The death of 15-year-old Berkin Elvan following a 269-day coma after he was struck by a police teargas canister sparked a day of rage on Wednesday across about 30 Turkish cities. But the scale, intensity and focus of that protest revealed a profound political crisis: Demonstrators denounced not only police impunity but also government corruption.

Public anger against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been growing since a massive corruption probe in December revealed a web of crooked business deals and media intimidation. Hundreds of tape recordings alleged to contain conversations between Erdogan and his closest confidants have triggered a near earthquake in the Turkish political realm.

The corruption saga began in November after Erdogan threatened to close a network of private schools operated by Fethullah Gülen, an cleric who lives in self-imposed exile in the United States but who heads a powerful Islamic movement with extensive influence in Turkish politics. Gülen's support within the institutions of state lies in the police force and among judges, many of whom have been groomed for lifelong allegiance through his private schooling network. Though they were once political allies with a shared conservative Islamic vision for Turkey, Erdogan’s move against Gülen’s support base in Turkey has been viewed as an attempt to consolidate all political power in the office of the prime minister. Indeed, it is not uncommon to hear Turks warn of a coming “Erdogan sultanate.”

Responding to Erdogan's move to close the private schools, Gülen's allies released recordings of senior Turkish officials, including Erdogan and his son, allegedly proving graft at the highest levels of government. The eavesdropping operation had reportedly been going on for years. A furious Erdogan dismissed some of the tapes as fabrications and denounced the corruption probe as a "coup attempt" designed to unseat him. While blaming unnamed foreign sources for this alleged plot, he has fought back viciously at home. After dismissing thousands of senior police officers throughout the country, Erdogan and his allies in the Turkish parliament forced through new laws to put the appointment of judges under his power and limit Internet freedom. Turkish authorities are now able to block websites — including those that publish corruption-related material — without a court order. President Abdullah Gül, a faithful AKP politician and potential successor to Erdogan, expressed reservations about both bills but dutifully signed them into law last month.

The corruption probe has reinforced long-held suspicions of many Turks that much of the construction boom under Erdogan has involved multiple instances of graft and wrongdoing. The allegations of corruption and of intimidation tactics used against the media establishment have added fuel to the anger of protesters who took to the streets around Gezi Park in Istanbul last summer to protest what they called Erdogan's authoritarian tendencies. Until last week, however, the simmering anger was largely kept off the streets. Now, Elvan’s death has provided a rallying point for a renewed challenge to Erdogan.

The teenager’s death spurred opposition parties to put aside their differences and organize a joint response. Traditional foes such as the Republican People's Party, the National Movement Party and the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party joined arms in one of the largest public funerals in Turkey since that of slain journalist Hrant Dink seven years ago. Concerts were canceled, theaters shut and many of Istanbul's lively bars closed to mark Elvan's funeral. And thousands of Turks from a broad cross-section of society poured into the streets in about 30 cities. After months of corruption allegations and a struggling economy, the death of Elvan has, for many, provided the spark for taking to the streets.

The mass mobilization comes at a time of heightened political instability, just weeks ahead of crucial local elections that will choose the mayors of major cities such as Istanbul and Ankara. Despite these being local elections, Erdogan has banked his political future on a strong showing for his AK Party, making the poll less about local issues than a referendum on Erdogan's 11-year rule.

The prime minister harshly condemned the protesters. "Trying to set fire to the streets 18 days before elections is not a democratic stance," Erdogan told an election rally in southern Turkey on Wednesday. "I appeal to employers' organizations, trade unions and NGOs who are provoking incidents to show responsibility. Whoever has problems should solve them at the ballot box on March 30."

Going to the polls has worked for Erdogan in the past. The AK Party built its until-now-unassailable parliamentary majority through providing excellent municipal services, helping the individual citizen and improving infrastructure in neglected cities. Yet this program has been set aside in favor of Erdogan’s increasingly grandiose vision for Istanbul. The prime minister has spent much of the last six years hammering out major infrastructure projects in the city whose scale has surprised many Turks, while ignoring other towns and cities in the Turkish heartland. The corruption probe has cast a pall of suspicion over those efforts.

That Erdogan is the focal point of an outpouring of anger over the death of Berkin Elvan reveals a crucial point concerning the upcoming elections: Turkey is in a state of deep political crisis that is not going to end quickly. While many analysts believe the AKP will win the local elections by a slim margin, protests are likely to continue. Throughout his political career, Erdogan has been able to deftly neutralize his opponents, whether they were senior military officers or leftist protesters on the streets of Istanbul. But the broad mainstream of Turkish society that has joined in expressing outrage over Elvan suggests that this time, Erdogan will struggle to isolate his opponents.