Renewed Protests in Turkey As 15-Year-Old Boy Dies After Nine Months in Coma

Last
spring, protests in Istanbul
that started over government plans to turn a local park into a
mall transformed into
broader demonstrations against the increasingly authoritarian
government of the long-time prime minister, Recep Erdogan, embodied
by the government’s heavy handed response, and media blackout of,
protests.

As is often the case with popular anti-government protests,
Erdogan
blamed the opposition for escalation. Amnesty International

accused the Turkish government of various human rights abuses
in their response to protesters. Its report said 8,000 people were
injured and at least three killed. A relevant Wikipedia article

identifies 11 people killed in protests, the last being
15-year-old Berkin Elvan, who died nine months after being struck
in the head, according to his family, by a high-velocity gas
canister thrown by Turkish police at protesters while he was going
to the grocery store. The death has reignited protests, as the AP

reports:

The unrest swelled within hours of news that Berkin
Elvan, 15, had died in an Istanbul hospital, nine months after
losing consciousness with a fractured skull…
Protests were reported in at least nine other cities. Authorities
could provide no details on injuries to protesters or
police.

Human Rights Watch has called on police officers implicated in
the incident that led to Elvan’s death to be imprisoned, something
which has obviously not happened.

Earlier this year, the Turkish government
dismissed 350 police officers after finding out the government
and ruling party were the target of a wide-ranging corruption
investigation they claim they shouldn’t have been kept in the dark
about.