Sinem Dedetaş, the first woman elected mayor of Üsküdar, has been detained and suspended from office amid an investigation into alleged corruption in municipal permit procedures. Her detention is the latest in a series of investigations involving opposition-run municipalities in Turkey, fuelling concerns over judicial independence and the future of local democracy.
Dedetaş, a member of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), was detained on 29 July alongside five municipal officials and businesspeople. Prosecutors have accused the suspects of involvement in bribery, extortion, abuse of office and irregularities in construction and occupancy permits. Dedetaş contests the allegations.
The government maintains that investigations into opposition municipalities concern criminal conduct and rejects accusations of political interference. Opposition parties, civil-society organisations and international observers, however, argue that judicial proceedings are increasingly being used to constrain elected opponents.
A Symbolically Important Victory
Dedetaş was elected mayor in the local elections of 31 March 2024, receiving 49.90 per cent of the vote and defeating the incumbent AKP mayor, Hilmi Türkmen.
Her victory brought Üsküdar, which was long regarded as an important stronghold of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s political movement, under CHP control for the first time since 1994. Dedetaş also became the district’s first woman mayor.
A naval architect and marine engineer, Dedetaş had previously broken similar barriers in her professional career. Between 2014 and 2016, she became the first woman to chair the Chamber of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers.
In 2019, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu appointed her general manager of İstanbul Şehir Hatları AŞ, the city’s municipally owned ferry company. She was the first woman to lead the institution.
During her tenure, the company sought to expand women’s employment in maritime professions, including operational and seafaring positions traditionally dominated by men. The period also saw renewed restoration and production work at the historic Haliç Shipyard, including the restoration of the Paşabahçe ferry.
“No Service Goes Unpunished”
Following an earlier operation targeting Üsküdar Municipality in April, Dedetaş rejected allegations of corruption and irregularity.
She said that, after taking office, her administration had prohibited the solicitation of donations or financial contributions in connection with planning applications and building permits. The municipality, she maintained, neither requested nor accepted such payments.
Responding to the investigations, she remarked: “No service goes unpunished.”
A message attributed to Dedetaş was later shared on her social-media account while she was in police custody.
“Although I cannot be with you this morning, as on every morning, my thoughts and my heart are in the streets of Üsküdar,” she said.
“When I look back over my working life, a police cell was certainly not where I deserved or imagined I would find myself. Thankfully, I am in good health. Your messages of support are reaching me. I hope to see you again very soon.”
Investigation and Suspension
The investigation is being conducted by the Istanbul Anatolian Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. Prosecutors allege that municipal construction and occupancy permits were connected to bribery, extortion through abuse of office and the establishment or leadership of a criminal organisation.
Reports citing the prosecutor’s office state that the investigation followed complaints, statements from alleged victims and testimony from suspects benefiting from effective-remorse provisions. The allegations have not been proven and remain subject to judicial proceedings.
Dedetaş was detained alongside Deputy Mayor Ceyhun Ünlü, executive assistant Alihan Koçoğlu, architect Burçin Çevik, business consultant Adem Altıntaş and contractor Bülent Orhan Tozkoparan. Police also searched 11 locations across Istanbul.
A court subsequently ordered the pretrial detention of Dedetaş, Koçoğlu, Çevik and Tozkoparan. Ünlü and Altıntaş were released under judicial supervision.
On 1 August, the Interior Ministry temporarily suspended Dedetaş from office. On 5 August, the Üsküdar Municipal Council elected CHP member Sibel Tan Çetinkaya as acting mayor, enabling the party to retain control of the municipality during Dedetaş’s suspension.
Wider Concerns over Local Democracy
The detention prompted criticism from opposition politicians, academics, civil-society organisations and international municipal bodies.
The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe described the case as another example of a “persistent pattern” of detentions affecting opposition mayors and municipal officials in Turkey.
Professor Lerzan Özkale of Istanbul Technical University also highlighted Dedetaş’s professional achievements and electoral success in a district long considered an AKP stronghold. “As of this morning, she has begun to pay the price for that success,” she said. “We stand with our dear Sinem.”
Critics argue that the case concerns not only Dedetaş but also the democratic mandate given to her by Üsküdar’s voters. They warn that detaining and suspending elected mayors risks weakening local institutions and public confidence in the rule of law.
Supporters have also drawn attention to the gendered significance of the case, arguing that the treatment of a prominent woman mayor may discourage women’s political participation in a country where they remain underrepresented in elected office.