Gezi Park protests
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Restoring Istanbulʹs Ataturk Cultural Center
More than merely prestige?
Once the symbol of modern Turkey, now it stands in ruins. The Ataturk Cultural Center (AKM) has been abandoned for a decade since its closure in 2008. Amid furious debate about its future, many are unhappy with current plans for the site. By Ceyda Nurtsch
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Turkish actor Baris Atay
Defy the dictators!
Turkish actor Baris Atay plays a dictator in a one-man show that is intended to get audiences thinking. The play has been banned in several Turkish cities, but Atay remains defiant. By Gezal Acer
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Kemal Kiliçdaroğlu's "Justice March"
Turkey's emboldened opposition
In Turkey, where President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's government has been working to centralise political power, opposition parties have lately had few reasons to be optimistic. This month's massive rally in Istanbul was a rare exception. By Sinan Ülgen
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Bonn′s Beethovenfest
Sounds of the Arab Spring
Six composers from five Arab countries translated their impressions of the Arab Spring into music, providing the pianist Seda Roder with material for her multimedia ″Songs of Spring″ performance, rich in hope and disappointment. By Gaby Reucher
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Turkey's democratic future
Hanging by a thread
The thwarted coup of 15 July is being celebrated by the AKP as well as large sections of Turkish civil society as a victory for democracy. But the state of emergency and the mass arrests spotlight the authoritarian political tide in Turkey. Ceyda Nurtsch reports from Istanbul
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Football fan protests in Turkey and Egypt
Closed ranks
Battles for control of stadiums and other public spaces in Turkey and Egypt have pitched militant football fans against authoritarian leaders. By James Dorsey
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Flouting freedoms in Turkey
Self-censorship thriving
Turkey welcomes private investment in its arts and culture. But freedom for artists and journalists is largely restricted. The alternative arts scene has slipped into the background. By Ceyda Nurtsch
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Anti-construction protests in Turkey
″Reclaim Istanbul!″ – policy vs. architecture
Turkey′s construction industry is booming. As a key pillar of the nation's economy, President Erdogan's ambitious goal is to ensure it catapults Turkey into the world's top ten economies by 2023. But the AKP's ″urban transformation project″ has many downsides. By Ceyda Nurtsch
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The #siirsokakta movement in Turkey
The poem is on the street
In the wake of the Gezi protests – and through interaction with social media – a movement arose in Turkey that inspired people to write, spray and scrawl snippets of poetry on all kinds of surfaces in public spaces. It became a vibrant part of literary life in Turkey. By Achim Wagner
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Interview with Turkish political scientist Gulistan Gurbey
Litmus test for Turkish democracy
Political scientist Gulistan Gurbey sees two consequences of the electoral success of the pro-Kurdish HDP: firstly, it has prevented the introduction of a presidential system favoured by President Erdogan and secondly, it will have positive impulses for Turkish democracy. Nevertheless, she believes that turbulent times lie ahead. Interview conducted by Basak Ozay
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Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Vladimir Putin
Sunni Islam meets Russian orthodoxy
While the Turkish president is hoping his party will win an absolute majority in the upcoming parliamentary elections, the Russian head of state has long since eliminated all opposition in his country. There is much that unites these two men – but much that divides them too on a political and biographical level. By Cigdem Akyol
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Interview with filmmaker Arash T. Riahi
"Non-violent revolutions are not a hippie fantasy"
With "Everyday Rebellion", Iranian-born filmmakers Arash and Arman T. Riahi have created a multimedia project that celebrates civil disobedience and connects peaceful forms of protest in Islamic countries and around the globe. Nahid Fallahi spoke to Arash T. Riahi about the film