Erdogan defends state of emergency, says it safeguards against terrorism, strikes

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday the state of emergency should be welcomed by businesses as it guards against terrorism and prevents workers from going on a strike.

Parliament voted to extend the state of emergency this week, declared in 2016 following a failed coup attempt. This is the seventh such extension, allowing the government to bypass parliament in passing new laws.

The UN has slammed Turkey for its "protracted state of emergency" following the failed July 2016 coup attempt. Turkish authorities have since arrested thousands of people.

The UN also warned the use of emergency powers appeared "to stifle any form of criticism or dissent vis-a-vis the government".

"The state of emergency only affects terrorists. Now it’s preventing labour strikes, such as the Bursa strike, which we stopped right away. It's a struggle against terrorism," Erdogan said in a speech to the DEIK business lobby, which represents Turkey's private sector overseas.

"When our business people say the state of emergency should be lifted, it upsets us... We will continue extending it for the peace of our country, yes we will, for the 10th time if necessary."

Turkey's main opposition party staged sit-in demonstrations across the country last week to protest the state of emergency and its extension.

Authorities stopped workers in the northwestern city of Bursa from striking earlier in the year. Under emergency rule, strikes, protests and displays of civil disobedience can be shut down on security grounds.

Erdogan called snap elections for June 24, bringing the polls forward by a year-and-a-half after a call from his main nationalist ally, in a move that has left opposition ill-prepared to challenge him.

More than 150,000 people have been arrested since the 2016 coup attempt. An additional 150,000 civil servants have been fired from their posts.