In a speech last night at the Istanbul city hall amidst ongoing protests, Turkey’s main opposition leader Özgür Özel announced a list of companies to be boycotted due to alleged ties to the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
| Turkish opposition leader announces companies to be boycotted as protests continue |
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Turkey has been rocked by protests over the past six days since the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on March 19th. İmamoğlu, a member of Özel’s Republican People’s Party (CHP), has been widely viewed as Erdoğan’s most viable challenger and was officially selected as his party’s presidential nominee in a primary vote on Sunday (March 23).
| Turkish opposition leader announces companies to be boycotted as protests continue |
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EspressoLab tops Özel’s boycott list
The popular Turkish coffee chain EspressoLab, found in cities across the Middle East and particularly common on Turkish university campuses, topped Özel’s list announced Monday evening.
In comments targeting the coffee chain, Özel said: “I enjoy drinking Turkish coffee, and I enjoy drinking filter coffee. I encourage you all to drink coffee as well. But I would advise you not to drink coffee from EspressoLab.”
Özel’s full boycott list included:
| EspressoLab | D&R Book Stores |
| İdefix | Demirören Shopping Mall |
| Kilim Furniture | Ülker Chocolate |
| Türk Petrol | Milangaz |
| Likitgaz | TRT National Broadcaster |
| TGRT | İhlas Ev Aletleri |
| Turkuaz Publishing | National Lottery |
| misli.com | iddia.com |
| ETS Tur Travel Company |
Özel also alleged ETS Tur’s links to Turkish Minister of Culture and Tourism Nuri Ersoy. Turkey’s opposition has argued that lax safety audits by the Ministry contributed to a deadly hotel fire in January in which 78 perished.
Written/translated for Medyascope by Leo Kendrick
In a speech last night at the Istanbul city hall amidst ongoing protests Turkey’s main opposition leader Özgür Özel announced a list of companies to be boycotted due to alleged ties to the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
