Protests held in Turkey after lira's historic crash

Duvar English 

Protests were held in Istanbul and the capital Ankara on Nov. 23 after the lira's historic crash. 

Groups were seen marching in both cities, as they called on the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) to resign. 

In Ankara, protesters marched in the Çankaya district. 

Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) students also took to the streets to protest and called for Erdoğan's resignation. 

In Istanbul, Boğaziçi University students also marched with the same demand. 

Police prevented a group from marching in Istanbul's Şişli district. Police barricades were placed on Taksim Square, the scene of the 2013 Gezi protests. 

"Go away AKP, this country is ours," chanted the protesters. 

In Istanbul's Kadıköy, protesters chanted, "AKP to the grave, people to power!" 

There were also reports of protests in the northwestern city of Eskişehir and the Aegean province of İzmir. 

Turkey's lira nosedived 15% on Nov. 23 in its second-worst day ever after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan defended recent sharp rate cuts, and vowed to win his "economic war of independence" despite widespread criticism and pleas to reverse course.

The lira tumbled as far as 13.45 to the dollar, plumbing record troughs for an 11th straight session, before paring some losses. It has shed 45% of its value this year, including a near 26% decline since the beginning of last week.

Over 263,000 tweets were shared during the day that called on the government to resign in the face of the economic crisis. On the opposing side, more than 300,000 tweets were shared by AKP supporters who said, "I stand with my state."

Erdoğan has applied pressure on the central bank to pivot to an aggressive easing cycle that aims, he says, to boost exports, investment and jobs - even as inflation soars to near 20% and the currency depreciation accelerates, eating deeply into Turks' earnings.

Many economists called the rate cuts reckless while opposition politicians appealed for immediate elections. 

After a meeting between Erdoğan and central bank Governor Şahap Kavcıoğlu, the bank issued a statement saying the selloff was "unrealistic and completely detached" from economic fundamentals.

There was no hint at an intervention to stem the meltdown. The central bank said it could only do so under certain conditions in "excessive volatility."