The repression of authoritarian rule in Turkey hides the dysfunctionality of the opposition. Fragmented, unprincipled, distant from the country’s issues and trapped in ideological showdowns, the opposition serves Erdoğan’s policies. Politicians who do not speak out against the unlawfulness of different groups of people and who embrace the regime’s hate speech are far from promising law, democracy and hope for all. Turkish politics has been facing a serious opposition problem in recent years.
The political landscape in Turkey has reached an unprecedented level of repression and dysfunction. The recent targeting of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, seen as President Erdoğan’s strongest rival, has sparked public outcry (with judicial proceedings initiated), protests and mobilization of opposition groups and university students, but this reaction is seen as a belated move. İmamoğlu’s university diploma, which he received more than thirty years ago, was canceled as a tactic to block his presidential candidacy. In an impassioned speech on March 15, 2025, Imamoglu warned the public that nothing – property, fundamental rights or freedoms – would be safe if a regime could retroactively cancel an academic degree.
Shortly after this speech, Imamoğlu was jailed, his work team and even his lawyers were detained and many of them arrested. In Turkey, it is now a criminal offense just to mention his name or show his image. The main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), of which İmamoğlu is a member, has been thrown into turmoil on the other side. CHP leader Özgür Özel declared that Turkey is witnessing a level of rights violations never seen before.
However, this claim ignores a harsh reality: The erosion of human rights in Turkey is nothing new. Since 2015, tens of thousands of people have had their diplomas revoked and their assets seized. More than three million people have been investigated for their alleged “links and contacts” with the Gülen movement. Turkey has the highest prison population in Europe and many people are imprisoned solely because of the associations they belong to, the banks they bank with, the schools they attend or their beliefs. Elderly prisoners and young children share the same cells. Hundreds have died in detention, in prison, on their way to escape Turkey. This level of repression rivals regimes like North Korea and Venezuela.
Yet Imamoğlu and Özel have remained largely silent in the face of years of systematic harassment. While tens of thousands have been fired, jailed or forced into exile, CHP figures have done little or nothing to oppose it. Worse, they have often quietly supported Erdoğan and the state’s crackdown on perceived enemies, especially the Gülen movement. The CHP’s current outcry indicates more anger at being targeted themselves than a genuine concern for justice. In Turkey, everyone takes a democratic stance or expects a democratic attitude only when it is their turn to suffer. Solidarity has become selective and this hypocrisy lies at the heart of the country’s democratic collapse.
Erdogan’s Authoritarian Strategy
Erdoğan’s political longevity owes much to his mastery of authoritarian tactics. His method is simple: identify an enemy, generate fear and consolidate loyalty. In the early 2000s, Erdoğan allied himself with liberals, pro-EU figures and the Gülen movement to break the military’s grip on politics. After consolidating his power through elections, he turned his back on his former allies.
The turning point was the Gezi Park protests in 2013 and the corruption scandal that followed. Instead of accountability, Erdoğan accused his former partners, the Gülen movement, of staging a judicial coup. He labeled them terrorists and purged them from all institutions. Teachers, judges, doctors, academics and even grocers have been prosecuted and punished for minor connections such as sending their children to schools close to Gülen or subscribing to the Zaman newspaper.
The July 15, 2016 failed coup attempt gave Erdoğan the pretext for a wide-ranging crackdown. Hundreds of thousands of people were dismissed, jailed or forced into voluntary exile. Opposition parties, including the CHP, offered little resistance to this process. Out of fear or ideological rivalry, many CHP figures supported the purges. But the rules of authoritarianism are universal: When the government sets a precedent for repression, no one is safe. The tools used against the Gülen movement are now being used against CHP members.
A Fragmented and Selfish Opposition
The opposition in Turkey is failing not for lack of numbers or influence, but for lack of principles and unity. Names like Özgür Özel are still repeating Erdoğan’s narratives, trying to legitimize them by referring to the Gülen movement with the term “FETÖ”, which the regime has coined to blame the opposition. The CHP has never built a genuine democratic coalition; instead, it closed its eyes when others were wronged and now demands solidarity when it itself is under attack.
Erdoğan uses this fragmentation skillfully: Divide and rule. Even now, he is forging tactical alliances with groups he previously criticized, such as the Kurdish political movement. In exchange for promises of autonomy or influence, former critics now praise Erdoğan and his ultra-nationalist ally Devlet Bahçeli. Kurdish and Turkish opposition groups prioritize narrow interests over universal democratic values.
As long as opposition leaders act only when their own supporters are persecuted and remain indifferent to the plight of others, Turkey’s crisis of democracy will deepen. Without solidarity, without coherence and without a principled stand for justice, the opposition cannot challenge Erdogan. In fact, this hypocrisy ensures the continuation of his power.
Erdoğan’s resistance is not only the result of his own cunning, but a reflection of the weakness, selfishness and opportunism of those who claim to oppose him.
