24 Photos That Illustrate How Istanbul's #OccupyGezi Protesters Feel About The Prime Minister

SPOILER: They aren't his biggest fans.

1. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been the prime minister of Turkey since 2003.

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3. Erdoğan is a member of the Justice and Development Party (AKP). It's a center-right conservative party that favors a conservative democracy.

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5. According to a Pew Research poll, 62% of Turks like Prime Minister Erdoğan.

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7. Erdoğan is not, however, popular in Istanbul, where he served as mayor from 1994-1998.

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9. According to the same Pew Research poll, 54% of population of Istanbul feel negatively towards him.

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11. (In this one they're comparing him to Justin Bieber.)

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13. The protests currently going on are against a perceived sense of growing authoritarianism in Erdoğan's administration.

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15. The people involved with #OccupyGezi assembled to protest the demolition of a beloved park in Istanbul, but the demonstrations quickly turned into something larger.

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17. The most common thread tying the protesters together is an anger over a growing Islamism in the government.

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19. Reports of heavy government censorship of the media have enraged protesters further.

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21. The prime minister slammed the protests going on in Gezi Park on Sunday, saying "social media is the worst menace to society."

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23. On Wednesday, thousands of union workers marched on Taksim Square in Istanbul, lending support to the protesters occupying the park.

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