VIDEO: Voting ends abroad, scuffle erupts in Tokyo

TOKYO

Riot police officers stand guard in front of the Turkish embassy in Tokyo on October 25, 2015, following a scuffle between Turks and Kurds. AFP photo

The ballot boxes in Turkish missions abroad closed for voting late Oct. 25 for the Nov. 1 snap elections following a scuffle that injured 12 people during polling at the Turkish Embassy to Tokyo on Oct. 25. 

There were long queues in front of the Turkish embassies and consulate generals across the world on the last day of the voting. Voting at foreign representative offices and border gates started on Oct. 8, though the voting schedule of many offices varies.


 

At least 12 people were injured in a scuffle between Turks and ethnic Kurds as hundreds of Turkish citizens gathered on Oct. 25 at the embassy in Tokyo to vote in the general election, reports said.

TV footage showed police breaking up the fight outside the mission as voting for the Nov. 1 election began early in the Japanese capital.

The injured included two police officers, Tokyo Broadcasting System said, adding that the cause of the fight was not immediately clear. But Jiji Press, quoting a Turkish voter, said the clash began after Kurds tried to display the flag of a pro-Kurdish party.

Footage showed police forcibly interrupting a scuffle between Turks and Kurds in front of the Turkish embassy as voting for the Nov. 1 election began early Oct. 25 in Japan.

“I was attacked by Turks all of a sudden while I was in a car with my friends,” a Kurdish man whose shirt had been torn off told the broadcaster in front of the embassy, which was heavily guarded by local police. Some 3,600 Turkish nationals are currently resident in Japan, according to the country’s foreign ministry.

Switzerland was the European country where the participation in the elections was highest at 46.45 percent.
Turkish citizens rushed to polling stations in Berlin, where 140,000 Turkish members of the electorate are living, as well as Cologne, where there are 128,000 voters. 

Around 516,000 people voted in Germany, where the total number of Turkish voters amounts to around 1.4 million. The participation rate was 40 percent in Paris, which is home to around 315,000 Turkish voters.

While voting abroad ended on Oct. 25, Turks living abroad will be able to vote at customs gates until Nov. 1. 

A total of 2,895,885 Turkish citizens living abroad were eligible to vote at either 112 foreign representative offices in 54 countries or at 30 customs gates on Turkey’s borders and international airports.