More than half a million people took to Twitter to say ‘enough’ to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after he vowed to not run for re-election if his people wanted it.
‘Tamam’ – which roughly translate as ‘that’s enough’ – became a worldwide trending topic on Twitter after more than 480,000 tweets using the word were posted by Tuesday afternoon.
It came hours after Erdogan, who has been in power for the past 15 years, said he would step aside ‘if my people say ‘that’s enough.”
‘If one day our nation says ‘enough’, then we will step aside,’ he said in a speech in parliament.
More than half a million people took to Twitter to say ‘enough’ to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (pictured) after he vowed to not run for re-election if his people wanted it
The most popular – and divisive – politician in recent Turkish history, Erdogan has ruled for 15 years, overseeing a period of sharp economic growth and a widespread crackdown against his opponents.
Last month, he declared snap elections for June 24, bringing the polls forward by more than a year.
Soon after the speech, the #Tamam hashtag swept across Turkish-language Twitter, then became a global trending topic.
‘We want democracy so we say #enough to Erdogan. Please leave your seat, you did insane things to our country and people. Enough,’ said one user.
‘You will not step aside quietly. You will give account for the things you did. Enough!’ said another.
Three of Erdogan’s rivals – Meral Aksener, Muharrem Ince and Temel Karamollaoglu – also joined the fray, together garnering more than 50,000 retweets.
‘Time is up. Enough!’ tweeted Ince, the candidate of the main opposition CHP.
Three of Erdogan’s rivals – Meral Aksener, Muharrem Ince and Temel Karamollaoglu – also joined the fray
Social media has become the primary platform for opposition against the government in Turkey, where traditional media is saturated with coverage of Erdogan and his ministers.
Erdogan’s speeches, usually two or three a day, are all broadcast live on major channels, while opposition parties get little to no coverage.
The ‘Tamam’ tweets also provided a rare moment of opposition unity with all major parties, including the pro-Kurdish opposition uniting behind the hashtag. Pro-Kurdish politicians and nationalists rarely find common ground.
‘Enough: It’s very strange that Erdogan has offered the opposition a uniting slogan,’ tweeted journalist Rusen Cakir.
Last month, Erdogan (left, with Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Tuesday) declared snap elections for June 24, bringing the polls forward by more than a year
Rights groups and Turkey’s Western allies have criticised Ankara for its deteriorating record on civil rights and have voiced concerns that the NATO member has been sliding further into authoritarianism under Erdogan.
The government says the measures are necessary due to the security threats it faces.
After the vote, Turkey will switch to the powerful, executive presidential system narrowly approved in a referendum last year.
Erdogan called snap presidential and parliamentary elections a year and a half before schedule.
The elections will usher in a new executive presidential system that increases the powers of the president.