University students involved in nationwide protests against the detention and subsequent arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu are at risk of eviction from dormitories managed by the Turkish Higher Education Credit and Hostels Institution (KYK), the Evrensel daily reported.
Following İmamoğlu’s detention in mid-March, students took to the streets in protest. They have also called for a boycott of classes and examinations, which has been supported by unions, prominent figures in society and opposition politicians.
Some students who participated in the protests have been threatened with eviction by their dorm’s management. In certain cases, they were forcibly removed, with their personal belongings packed into trash bags by the staff. The students argue that this action is unfair, emphasizing that participating in the protests is their constitutional right, not a criminal act.
A student residing in a KYK dormitory in Kocaeli, a province in northwestern Turkey, said he was called to the dormitory manager’s office, where he was informed that a disciplinary investigation had been initiated into him. He was instructed to submit a written defense within three days and was told that the disciplinary board would decide his fate, which could include eviction.
Fearing eviction, the student consulted a lawyer to help prepare his defense. However, he expressed concerns about having no place to stay if he were forced to leave.
A similar situation occurred for a student in a dormitory in Muğla. After participating in a protest on March 21, the student was called in by the police for questioning, after which he was released. Later, the dormitory management informed him that he had to pack his belongings and leave. When he resisted, his belongings were packed into trash bags and left outside the dorm.
The student shared how painful it was to be evicted from a dorm funded by Turkish taxpayers, saying, “I couldn’t even pack my belongings; they put everything in trash bags and tossed them aside. When I returned, I found my things in the trash bags.”
Other students have reported having their state scholarships cut after taking part in the protests, which has put them under immense financial strain.
According to a previous ruling by the Ankara 23rd Administrative Court the suspension of a state-provided student loan due to a student’s attendance at a peaceful demonstration is illegal. The court ruled a loan can be cut only if the student was sentenced to at least six months in prison or suspended from school for at least one academic term.
This is not the first instance of the KYK penalizing students for participating in peaceful protests. In 2022 the monthly loans of students involved in protests over student housing shortages were suspended.
