Erdogan orders new faculties open in university at centre of protests

Two new faculties are being created by presidential decree at a Turkish university that has been at the centre of weeks of protests by students already angry at President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent decision to appoint a controversial rector there.

The creation of the faculties of law and communication at Bogazici came in an overnight presidential decree.

Critics say the move is an attempt to further dent academic freedom at the country’s top university while providing allies for the new rector, Melih Bulu, with the appointments of politically motivated academics.

Bulu, who is close to Erdogan’s ruling party, has been largely isolated at his new post, with most academics demanding his resignation.

The new faculties will serve as a “Trojan horse” to “provide the necessary academic cadre to support” Bulu, wrote academic Yaman Akdeniz on Twitter.

The new faculties will help boost “quality” at universities, Erdogan’s communication director, Fahrettin Altun, tweeted.

Since gaining expansive executive presidency powers in a 2018 election, Erdogan has the authority to appoint rectors and create new faculties at state universities without having to consult the university in question.

Students and academics have been protesting Bulu’s appointment since early January, despite a heavy police crackdown and several detentions.

Erdogan called the protesters “terrorists” and vowed to clamp down on further protests, defending his appointment as in line with the laws.

On Friday, an Istanbul court jailed two university students and separately issued a travel ban on 21 protesters.

The crackdown on protests drew international criticism, including from the US and the UN.