The 555K protests were the first example of

civil disobedience Civil disobedience is the active and professed refusal of a citizenship, citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders, or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be cal ...

in the history of Turkey. They were organised by students for 5pm on 5 May 1960 in

Kızılay, Ankara Kızılay is the city center of Ankara Province in the municipality and district of Çankaya District, Çankaya, Turkey.Democrat Party.

Events

The death of two students in the clashes between the police and the students during the 28-29 April events made the atmosphere in the country very tense. A group of young people decided to organise a protest. They mobilised others by word of mouth with the watchword "555k" - that is at 5pm on 5 May in Kızılay, but the details of exactly how or where the protest was to begin were unknown to those attending. At the agreed time,

Cemal Süreya Cemâl Süreya (born Cemâlettin Seber; 1931 – 9 January 1990) was a Turkish poet and writer of Kurdish– Zaza descent. Biography Süreya and his family were deported to Bilecik, a city in the Marmara Region of Turkey after the Dersim R ...

Altan Öymen Mehmet Altan Öymen (born 20 June 1932) is a Turkish journalist, author and former politician. Biography Öymen was born on 20 June 1932. He completed his secondary education at the Atatürk High School in Ankara. He graduated from the School ...

and their friends were ready for action but when none took initiative to start the protest they began it themselves around half past five. Arm in arm, they and their fellow students began whistling the Plevna March. As they walked, the pedestrians they passed made way for them, and some started to follow them. Their numbers grew steadily. After a while, the activists reached Zafer Square and returned to Kızılay. However, by this time, the police had already been stationed in Kızılay to disperse the protesters. They intervened in the demonstration, trying to break it up while the Plevna March continued to break out here and there all around them. At that time, the cars of President

Celal Bayar Celal is both a masculine Turkish given name and a surname. It is the Turkish form of the Arabic word Jalal (جلال), which means "majesty". Notable people with the name include: Given name * Celal Al (born 1984), Turkish actor * Celal Adan (b ...

, Prime Minister

Adnan Menderes Ali Adnan Ertekin Menderes (; 1899 – 17 September 1961) was a Turkish politician who served as Prime Minister of Turkey between 1950 and 1960. He was one of the founders of the Democrat Party (DP) in 1946, the fourth legal opposition party of ...

and Assembly Speaker

Refik Koraltan Refik Koraltan (1889 – 17 June 1974) was a Turkish politician, having served as the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) from 22 May 1950 to 27 May 1960. Biography Koraltan was born in Divriği, Sivas Province, in 1 ...

were nearby as they were returning from the Assembly. Bayar and Menderes, who learned that there was a protest in Kızılay, wanted to see what was going on. As soon as they reached the square, howls of protest, booing and slogans went up. Menderes got out of his car and angrily confronted the protesters, challenging them and cursing them. He shouted: "Are you going to kill me? Come on, kill me!" The protesters replied: "We are not murderers, the government are murderers!" The police eventually managed to get Menderes into a vehicle belonging to

Hürriyet ''Hürriyet'' (, ''Liberty'') is a major List of newspapers in Turkey, Turkish newspaper, founded in 1948. it had the highest circulation of any newspaper in Turkey at around 319,000. ''Hürriyet'' combines entertainment with news coverage and ...

Ankara Representative Emin Karakuş. While getting into the car, Menderes angrily banged on its inside ceiling. As soon as he was safely inside, Karakuş accelerated, broke through the crowd and left the square. During the protest, Menderes asked one of the students "What do you want?" (According to some rumors, the person he spoke to was former CHP Chairman

Deniz Baykal Deniz Baykal (20 July 1938 – 11 February 2023) was a Turkish politician. A member of the Republican People's Party (CHP) who served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1995 to 1996. Having served in numerous governmen ...

, a student at that time, or alternatively, according to the poet

, it was

Vedat Dalokay Vedat Dalokay (10 November 1927 – 21 March 1991) was a Turkish architect and a former mayor of Ankara. Early life and education Dalokay was born in Elazığ in 1927 to İbrahim Bey and Emine Hanım, in an Alevi Kurdish family who had r ...

). In answer, the student grabbed the Prime Minister's collar and said, "We want freedom!" Menderes replied "You're holding onto the collar of the Prime Minister. Is there any greater freedom than that?"

Slogans

University students gathered in the square and sang the Plevna March to these words: "Olur mu böyle olur mu? Kardeş kardeşi vurur mu? Kahrolası diktatörler. Bu dünya size kalır mı? Kızılırmak akmam diyor. Etrafını yıkmam diyor." "Is it okay? Is it okay? Does brother shoot brother? Damn dictators. Will this world be yours? The

Kızılırmak River The Kızılırmak (, Turkish language, Turkish for "Red River"), once known as the Halys River () and Alis River, is the longest river flowing entirely within Turkey. It is a source of hydroelectric power and is not used for navigation. Geogra ...

says it won't flow, It won't destroy its surroundings."

Aftermath

After the protests, the conditions of martial law were further tightened. It was forbidden for more than 10 people to gather in Ankara; broadcast bans were brought in one after another; and those who took part in the protests were detained. The statements of DP members, especially Menderes, became much harsher; indeed he called on his supporters to "punish" the protesters. About 20 days after the 555K protests, on May 27, the

1960 Turkish coup d'état The 1960 Turkish coup d'état (), also known as the 27 May Revolution ( or ''27 Mayıs Devrimi''), was the first coup d'état in the Republic of Turkey. It took place on 27 May 1960. The coup was staged by a group of 38 young Turkish military ...

took place, the first military intervention in the history of the republic. The poet

, who participated in the action, later wrote the poem ''555K''.

References

{{Protests in Turkey 1960 in Turkey Protests in Turkey 1960s in Turkish politics

Events

Slogans

Aftermath

See also

Further reading

References