At the weekend, fans of the Turkish first division soccer team shouted slogans directed against the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. After the earthquake, the criticism is great. Now they will be banned from the upcoming game. It has nothing to do with sport.
After calls critical of the government in the stadium, the Turkish first division soccer team Fenerbahce Istanbul will probably have to play the upcoming away game against Kayserispor without their supporters. Fenerbahce fans have been banned from Saturday’s game against Kayserispor, citing a decision by the Kayseri Provincial Security Council, the club said. This was experienced with “astonishment”. “As Fenerbahce Sportklub, we cannot accept this decision under any circumstances,” it said.
This “peculiar decision” widens the social divide and has nothing to do with sport, Fenerbahce said. The fans are prevented from supporting their team and the decision only serves to punish the club. Fenerbahce demanded an explanation and called on the authorities to reconsider and reverse the decision.
On Saturday evening, Fenerbahce fans at the home game against Konyaspor shouted anti-government slogans and called on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government to resign. Fans of the first division side Besiktas also chanted on Sunday: “Government, resign”.
After the February 6 earthquake catastrophe, criticism of the Erdogan government’s crisis management was raised. The opposition also accuses the president of not adequately preparing the country for such an earthquake and of failing to supervise construction, for example. The government denies the allegations. The earthquake has so far claimed more than 50,000 lives in Turkey and Syria. It was one of the deadliest earthquakes of the 21st century.
