Turkish police violently broke up a rally in Istanbul against the appointment of Melih Bulu as rector of Boğaziçi University. Around 100 students were taken into custody in the crackdown. The first assault on the group occurred at the Etiler stop, where the rally was held. Other participants in the protest were intercepted by police and university security personnel at the entrance to the South Campus.

The gate to the campus area has been besieged by security forces for some time on the instructions of Erdoğan minion Melih Bulu, a longtime supporter of the ruling AKP. Police justified the arrests with alleged violations of pandemic restrictions. It is still unclear to which precinct the students were taken.

Several HDP deputies, including Serpil Kemalbay, Dilşad Cambaz Kaya, Züleyha Gülüm, Murat Çepni, Dilan Dirayet Taşdemir, Hüda Kaya and Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, who supported the students' protest, were prevented from entering the campus grounds by police.

Protest against attack on university autonomy

Since early January, students and teachers in Turkey have been fighting back against the government's crackdown on university autonomy. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's appointment of five university rectors sparked fierce clashes at Turkish universities after the turn of the year. The interference of the president in the office of the rectors represents an authoritarian act that has wide repercussions. In particular, Bulu's appointment at Boğaziçi University has unleashed a level of protest not seen in Turkish universities for a long time. Despite police violence and waves of arrests, the protests have not yet been quelled and are continuing.

Students jailed for incitement to hatred

Two students from Boğaziçi University in Istanbul were jailed on Saturday. Doğu Demirtaş and Selahattin Uğuzeş are accused of inciting "hatred, enmity or humiliation" under Article 216/1 which corresponds to incitement of the people. The basis is a preliminary investigation conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office into an art installation that allegedly denigrates Islam.

However, the case against the students was initiated only after Turkish media sparked a lynching campaign and reported that "the LGBT perverts" misused a photo of the holy Kaaba in Mecca for their protest exhibition against Bulu. What is meant is a banner from the exhibition showing the mythical figure Shahmaran and rainbow flags.

Shahmaran is considered a goddess of wisdom and protector of secrets in Anatolia, Kurdistan and other regions in the Middle East. Top government officials also participated in the lynching campaign, including the ministers of justice and interior, the vice president, the head of the state religious authority Diyanet, the governor of Istanbul, and the board of the Turkish Council of Higher Education (YÖK).