The Turkish Foreign Ministry has
summoned the German ambassador to Ankara to protest the cancellation of
rallies in support of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
ahead of the April 16 referendum when Turks will vote
on whether to approve constitutional changes creating an executive presidency.
During a meeting between Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister for
European Affairs Mehmet Kemal Bozay and German Ambassador Martin Erdmann on
Thursday, a written démarche was handed to the German envoy.
“Our discomfort and our reaction to these developments
have been communicated in person to the German ambassador who was summoned this
evening to the ministry,” a senior Turkish official said on condition of
anonymity.
The latest spat between Ankara and Berlin broke out when
authorities in the southwestern German town of Gaggenau controversially
withdrew permission for an event, where Turkey's Justice Minister Bekir
Bozdag would have met with the Turkish community and meet his German
counterpart Heiko Maas.
Gaggenau authorities said in a statement that as the
town hall did not have the capacity to host so many people they had to
withdraw an earlier agreement with the Union of European Turkish Democrats
(UETD) to hold the rally.
“Because the event is now known across the region, the city
expects a large number of visitors. However, the Bad Rotenfels hall (in
Gaggenau), parking lots and access road are insufficient to meet that demand,”
they stated.
“Due to these reasons, the hall rental agreement with the UETD has
been revoked,” the town's officials added.
Bozdag condemned the move in return, claiming it smacked
of hypocrisy.
“Anti-democratic approaches, such as the annulment of my address
using the parking space size as an excuse is unacceptable,” he told reporters
while on an official visit to the French city of Strasbourg.
"It is unacceptable that German authorities, who
constantly lecture us on human rights, democracy, rule of law, [and] free
speech... do not tolerate a meeting organized by the Turkish community,"
he noted.
Meanwhile, the German Press Agency (DPA), citing an official
from the city of Cologne, said a March 5 event, where Turkish Economy
Minister Nihat Zeybekci would be holding a pro-Erdogan rally, has also been
canceled.
On Wednesday, a group of German legislators urged Chancellor
Angela Merkel to stop the Turkish president from entering the country while
Deniz Yücel, a Turkish-German journalist for German national daily Die Welt,
continues to be held in an Istanbul prison since February 14.
Germany’s Foreign Ministry summoned the
Turkish Ambassador to Berlin Huseyin Avni Karslioulu on Tuesday, with Merkel
describing the arrest as “bitter and disappointing”.
Relations
between Turkey and Germany have soured following a series of disputes since a failed
coup attempt to overthrow Erdogan last year.
Turkish
officials say over 240 people were killed and more than 2,100 others injured
following the botched July 15 putsch.
Tens of
thousands of people, including military personnel, judges and teachers, have
been suspended, dismissed or detained as part of the post-coup crackdown.
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