Will Turkish Riots, Use of Force Prevent Talks?

(Image source: Sky News) BY NICHOLE CARTMELL 
 Protesters in Istanbul's Taksim Square have been met by force from Turkish riot police. The police fired tear gas at the demonstrators — who've been in the square now for nearly two weeks. "There is water cannon behind me. ... lines of police in riot gear are stationed just below me. ... This is the biggest show of force in this square for well over a week." (Via BBC) Over the course of the past 11 days, protests have erupted among those in Turkey unhappy with the way the Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is governing the country. (Via ITV) The prime minister defended the latest police action. Erdogan warned he won't show any more tolerance. (Via Al Jazeera) Still, Erdogan is scheduled to meet with protest leaders Wednesday. It remains unclear if this meeting will still take place, but a writer for The National says it is needed as a way to save face for the upcoming election. Even though Erdogan's has been in power for the last 10 years and his party received the majority vote in the last election, some argue that if he needs votes outside of the AKP party he can't afford to ignore the movement. The head of the independent polling firm A&G told The National, "All politicians have to read this street movement correctly. If they don't manage to understand it properly, it may cost them votes." But Sky News points out if you move away from Taksim Square, you would find people going on with their day to day lives. The unrest is coming primarily from younger people. "There is a section of society that feels he is leading this country in the wrong direction, an increasingly authoritarian, an increasingly conservative Islamic direction. They do not speak for all of Turkey." The death toll from the protests has reached four. Three children and one policeman have died in the demonstrations.