FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
From Istanbul Municipality to Silivri, the story of Erdoğan's strongest rival...
In Turkey, there is a phrase often heard by journalists, politicians and activists when criticizing the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan: "Silivri is cold." It is not a comment on the weather, but a warning. One statement against the government is enough and you risk ending up in the infamous Silivri prison complex, where it can take months before you appear before a judge.
For decades, Silivri was known as a holiday destination on the shores of the Sea of Marmara. The area was filled with summer villas, small family farms and houses surrounded by gardens. But in the mid-2000s, the landscape changed. Among the fields rose the Marmara complex, built between 2005 and 2008.
Today it includes eight high-security prisons, an open prison and a courthouse. It is the largest prison complex in Europe and the site of some of the most important political trials in Turkey.
Its most famous resident is Ekrem İmamoğlu.
The former mayor of Istanbul was arrested on March 19, 2025. His trial began on March 9, 2026 and is expected to last until next year. Few believe he will be found innocent.
İmamoğlu is considered Erdoğan's strongest political rival. In the 2024 local elections, he convincingly won the Istanbul Mayorship with over 51 percent of the vote. Three weeks after he announced his candidacy for the 2028 presidential election, Istanbul University revoked his university degree, making him ineligible to run.
A morning later, hundreds of police surrounded his residence.
He is accused of 142 criminal offenses, including leading a criminal organization, bribery, manipulation of public tenders, illegal provision of personal data and a number of financial charges. 104 officials from the Istanbul Municipality were also arrested with him.
For many opposition supporters, the real reason for the arrest was that it ended Erdoğan's 25-year control over Istanbul.
In 2019, he won the election and handed the city's leadership to the Republican People's Party (CHP), breaking the ruling party's dominance. The former footballer had built a reputation as a pragmatic administrator, with investments in public transport, municipal services and social programs. Many Istanbul residents simply call him "İmam".
The trial is taking place inside the Silivri complex, about a two-hour drive from central Istanbul.
The entrance is controlled by the gendarmerie. Journalists without official authorization are not allowed in. Inside, a special room is reserved for the media, where reporters follow the session on a large screen. They spend hours there, with cups of Turkish coffee at their fingertips, waiting for the moment for the session to begin.
In the courtroom, the defendants enter through a corridor that leads directly from the prison. When they appear, family members stand up, wave to them, and blow them kisses from afar.
Shortly before 11:00, Ekrem İmamoğlu stands up and takes the microphone.
"This process has turned into a form of torture," he says.
He states that his associates have been "forgotten in prison like stones thrown into a well" and expresses concern for their families, who have been left without income.
As he speaks, gendarmerie officers constantly check the courtroom to make sure no one is recording on their phones. In Turkish courts, photography and filming of hearings is prohibited, and violators can be prosecuted.
Thus, the only ones who can see Erdoğan's main rival up close are family members, lawyers, journalists present, and prison guards.
The clash between İmamoğlu and the authorities began years ago. After his victory in the 2019 elections, the result was annulled and the vote was repeated. In the new elections, he won by an even larger margin.
He was later convicted in another case for insulting election officials, and the decision is still under appeal.
Even after his arrest, he remained a central figure in the opposition. His posters covered the streets of Istanbul for weeks until the authorities ordered them removed. His team continues to keep him active in political life through social media and recorded messages.
For many Turks, Silivri is no longer just the name of a town on the outskirts of Istanbul. It has become a symbol of the clash between the government and the opposition, a place that for many embodies the fear that criticism of the government could end up behind bars. / Taken with abbreviations from "The Guardian"
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