The 46-nation Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and Regional Authorities has reported a “generally degrading situation” with regard to local democracy in Turkey.

In its latest report on Turkey’s application of the European Charter of Local Self-Government, the Congress welcomes the impressive turnout (over 84%) in local elections in 2019 – one of the highest rates across the Council of Europe, demonstrating a strong interest in local self-government.

However, the Congress expresses particular concerns on a number of issues, including the fact that the government continues to suspend mayors when a criminal investigation is opened against them – based on an overly-broad definition of terrorism – and replace them with non-elected officials.

Source: https://www.coe.int/en/web/congress/-/council-of-europe-congress-highlights-generally-degrading-situation-of-local-democracy-in-turkey