ABOUT 100 protesters turned out to hold a peaceful rally held in support of the demonstrators in Turkey.

Sunday’s Cornmarket Street protest was organised by Turkish students at Oxford University.

Turkish demonstrators took to the streets in Istanbul last week over plans to develop Gezi Park in Taksim Square into a shopping mall, but this escalated to other areas of the country over the weekend after police used tear gas and water cannons on crowds.

Asli Tatliadim, 27, who lives in East Oxford, but is originally from Turkey, said: “It became more than a protest about a park.
“It became a protest about freedom and democracy.
“We did a silent protest in the middle of Cornmarket Street to show our solidarity.”

A member of the Oxford University Turkish society, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: “We think it is important to protest these incidents since basic human rights and political rights have been violated in Turkey.”

Members of the Oxford University Arab Society also attended.
There have now been several protests across cities in Turkey.