May 01 (V7N) - Turkish authorities have released more than 500 protesters who were arrested during May Day rallies in Istanbul, according to the lawyers’ association CHD. Police had cracked down on Friday’s demonstrations, using tear gas to disperse crowds and detaining hundreds of participants.  

By Saturday morning, all 576 detainees were freed, including union official Basaran Aksu. The Istanbul governor’s office reported a slightly lower figure of 575 arrests. CHD said its Istanbul branch had deployed members across the city to document arrests and provide legal assistance to those taken into custody.  

The association also noted that 47 people were arrested on April 28 ahead of the planned rallies, with four placed in custody and nine under house arrest.  

The protests were concentrated around Taksim Square, a symbolic site for mass gatherings in Turkey but closed to rallies since the large anti-government demonstrations of 2013. Aksu criticized the restrictions, saying: “You can’t close off a square to the workers of Turkey. Everyone uses Taksim for official ceremonies and celebrations. Only the labourers, the workers, the poor find the square closed to them.”  

May Day, celebrated globally as a day for workers and the working classes, typically sees heavy police deployment in Turkey. This year, unions and civil society groups had called for rallies under the slogan “Bread. Peace. Freedom.” Large areas of central Istanbul were sealed off, reflecting the government’s continued sensitivity to mass demonstrations in the city.  

END/WD/RH