ISTANBUL, Oct 8 — Ahead of COP31 next month, Turkish NGOs hope the UN climate summit will offer a rare opportunity to be heard in a country where space for public protest has steadily narrowed and arrests can happen “any time”.
Debates, workshops, cultural events and a massive rally are on the agenda for the People’s Climate Summit that will run alongside the main event in the southern Turkish city of Antalya from November 9.
Although hosting COP31 is a major diplomatic win for Turkey, NGOs and civil society groups know the authorities have little appetite for displays of activism or protest that are part and parcel of the annual climate summit.
Last month, police raided the LGBTQ community, detaining 117 people in an “obscenity” probe.
