'Casting off a shirt of fear': Turkish opposition leads thousands to end of 450km Ankara-Istanbul anti-government march.
‘Casting off a shirt of fear’. That’s how Turkish opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu described a three-week ‘justice march’ from Ankara to Istanbul.
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The head of the main opposition People’s Republican Party (CHP) organised the 450 kilometre walk in protest at a year-long government crackdown.
“This march raised awareness among our society. Now people can easily talk about their problems. One of the most fundamental points of the atmosphere that has been created, is that people who are facing injustices cannot reach out to the legal system. The reach to the judiciary system has been blocked. This march will solve that,” he said.
Thousands of people joined the march.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has defended the crackdown, which follows a failed coup attempt. He accuses the protesters of ‘acting together with terrorist groups’.