Clashes mar Turkish referendum in several provinces

Clashes erupted Sunday between groups of citizens and police around Turkey as the nation voted on a constitutional amendment package and dozens of people were detained on suspicion of preventing voters from heading to the polls.

According to Hurryiet Daily News, groups boycotting the vote clashed with police in the southern provinces of Mersin and Adana, as well as in Istanbul. A group of people wearing masks burned a car and a bus in front of a school in Mersin to keep people from voting, causing police to intervene, news agencies reported.

Another group that came to the school to vote argued with a separate faction in front of the local pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party, or BDP, building, the Anatolia news agency reported. The disagreement turned into a fight, again drawing police intervention. Ten people were detained as a result of the altercation.

Strict security measures were put in place throughout the country's eastern and southeastern provinces for the poll. The BDP, which had announced it would boycott the referendum, said it would ensure the security of citizens as they voted if they applied for such protection, a statement made in response to claims that those who chose to vote in heavily BDP areas could be threatened.

The turnout for the referendum in eastern Anatolia remained low, as the majority of citizens who went to the polls said 'yes' to the constitutional amendment package.

In the eastern provinces of Batman, Hakkari and Sirnak, the boycott call was heavily heeded, the Dogan news agency reported. Widespread boycotts of the vote were also observed in Agri, Ardahan, Diyarbakir, Igd?r, Kars, Mus and Van, though not as significantly so in Bitlis, Mardin and Tunceli.

Thirty people were detained in Hakkari on allegations of obstructing people from voting, while 20 were taken into custody for similar alleged offenses in Van.

In Sirnak, a group of temporary village guards and another group clashed over voting, resulting in injuries to eight people, the Anatolia news agency reported. Abit Ike, the BDP's Sirnak head, accused the guards of provoking the event and said gendarmerie forces watched and did nothing during the fight, the Dogan news agency reported.

The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, attacked a car that was transporting votes that were to be counted at the district election board in Hakkari with guns and rocket launchers, Dogan news agency reported. One soldier was injured in the attack.