The May Day in İstanbul took place under a heavy police blockade. Against the possibility of a militant and massive May Day, the state closed Taksim Square several days ago and imposed a de facto state of emergency throughout the city. Many people who tried to go to Taksim Square from different locations has been detained. But despite extraordinary measures and threats from the government, tens of thousands of people gathered at Saraçhane to march to Taksim Square, as called for by trade unions. For years, there has been a struggle for May Day demonstrations to be held in Taksim Square due to its historical and symbolic importance for the working class. Even though the The May Day Organising Committee, which consists of DİSK, KESK, TMMOB, TTB and TDB called to march to Taksim this year, it was revealed that they had made an agreement with the state to hold a rally in Saraçhane and not march to Taksim. Despite this, thousands of people spontaneously tried to march from Saraçhane to Taksim. However, the police attacked those who wanted to march to Taksim with tear gas and rubber bullets. Although the resistance continued for a long time, it was not possible to break through the police barricades. In the following days, people were detained in countless police raids for resisting to march to Taksim on May Day. As a result, totaly 49 of those detained were arrested and have been held in prison for days. We call on comrades around the world to stand in solidarity with those arrested for participating in Istanbul May Day and resisting for Taksim. Freedom for May Day Resisters! #FreeMayDayResisters #TaksimiÖzgürBırak