Demonstrators form a human chain to prevent friction with police

ISTANBUL

Demonstrators form a human chain in front of security forces at Taksim square late June 12. REUTERS photo

Demonstrations in Gezi Park carried on peacefully on the 16th day of the protests, a night after violent clashes at the Taksim Square, as the government proposed a referendum on the fate of the park. 

Despite the announcement from the Istanbul Governor Hüseyin Avni Mutlu via his Twitter account that no intervention would be made during the night at the park, some frictions arose between some small groups and the police. 

As police issued a warning to protesters “not to get close” to the area where officers were stationed, some protesters formed a human chain to prevent any scuffle from breaking out at the square, which is adjacent to the park. 

Deputies from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) also showed up in the demonstrations while artists organized a sit-in in the evening at the park 

Taksim Platform refuses referendum

Meanwhile, members of the Taksim Solidarity Platform that met the deputy prime minister last week said that they did not accept the government’s proposal of a referendum. “Nobody met with us. We rose up because we refused the police oppression that continued until this morning. [The ruling AKP's spokesperson Hüseyin Çelik] said those who stay in the park are marginal. No one will abandon the site tonight,” the group said in a statement.