Istanbul district governor bans online concert by Grup Yorum

Turkish folk band Grup Yorum's online concert was banned by the Istanbul Beyoğlu District Governor's Office, the band said in a tweet on July 1. The band has been prevented from holding concerts for years now, and two of their members who were imprisoned died last year after hunger strikes in protest of the government’s crackdown on the band.

Friday July 02 2021 12:03 pm

A banner reads "Long live a whole independent Turkey!" at a Grup Yorum concert.

Duvar English

An online concert planned by Turkish folk band Grup Yorum was banned by the Istanbul Beyoğlu District Governor's Office, an official social media account for the band said on July 1.

The band has been under a concert ban for years, their studios were raided and shuttered, and their members were imprisoned on terrorism charges.

"Our online concert was arbitrarily banned by the governor's office. We'll eventually have our concert," the band said in their tweet.

1 Temmuz'da sanatçı dostlarımızla birlikte yapacağımız internet konserimizin çekimi olacaktı. Valilik tarafından internet konserimiz keyfi olarak yasaklandı. Biz bu yasakları kabul etmiyoruz. Eninde sonunda konserimizi yapacağız.

GRUP YORUM HALKTIR SUSTURULAMAZ! pic.twitter.com/U8U5aLezuZ
— Grup Yorum (@Grup_YORUM) July 1, 2021

The band also noted that two of their imprisoned members, Helin Bölek and İbrahim Gökçek, died as a result of death fasts they started to demand a reversal of the concert ban.

"We will claim the rights that Helin and İbrahim established. OUR RIGHT TO CONCERTS CAN'T BE STOPPED!" the account said in a second tweet.

Valilik tarafından tebliğ edilen belgede budur. Konser yapma hakkı için Helin ve İbrahim ömrünü verdi. Helin ve İbrahim'in yarattığı değerlere sahip çıkacağız. KONSER HAKKIMIZ ENGELLENEMEZ! pic.twitter.com/U173NKBi7U
— Grup Yorum (@Grup_YORUM) July 1, 2021

Founded in 1985 as a reaction to the 1980 military coup and the subsequent military policies, Grup Yorum is known for its leftist stance and songs about political issues in Turkey.