Turkish PM denies law allowing detention of ‘potential’ protesters

ISTANBUL

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has dismissed reports of plans for a new regulation which would allow police to detain people who might stage a protest. DAILY NEWS photo, Selahattin SÖNMEZ

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has dismissed reports of plans for a new regulation which, according to earlier reports, would allow police to detain people who might stage a protest without the demand of a prosecutor or a judge.

“There is no file or suggestion about such a plan. I’m learning about it from you for the first time,” Erdoğan said when asked about the regulation plans, putting the blame on the media. “The print and visual media does these kind of things.”

Earlier reports said a new regulation was on its way that would allow the police to detain those who possess the “risk of conducting a protest” for 12 to 24 hours without the demand of a prosecutor or a judge, prompting acute worries from opposition deputies.

The regulation, which would reportedly be conducted jointly by the justice and interior ministries, would allow the police to detain people on the grounds of intelligence reports that suggest they are planning to conduct a demonstration or action, the reports said.