ANKARA - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed the country's media for their reporting on a heavy-handed police clampdown against a women's demonstration which caused tension with the European Union, the Anatolia news agency reported Thursday.
"All television channels heaped criticism on the police. Our media basically denounced Turkey to Europe and the world," Erdogan said in an interview late Wednesday with the private TGRT television channel.
"Was that really Turkey? What happened there? We need to consider these questions, but no one seems to do that," he added.
The prime minister, however, acknowledged that police went overboard in their response to the demonstration, but also argued that some of the protestors were sympathizers of outlawed groups who provoked officers.
"There was provocation, but there were also mistakes made by members of the police force. They should have been careful and not fallen for the provocation," he said.
More than 60 people were detained in Sunday's protest in Istanbul, meant to mark International Women's Day on March 8, when police broke down what it called an unauthorised gathering.
Television footage showed officers hitting demonstrators with batons and kicking women who had fallen to the ground.
"I do not find it humane to hit a woman who has fallen. It is wrong to do such a thing," Erdogan said.
The clampdown shocked EU officials who were in Turkey for discussions to prepare for the start of membership talks with the mainly Muslim country on October 3.
In response to EU criticism that the police used disproportionate force, local authorities have opened an investigation.
03/10/2005 08:16 GMT